ME TOO
Yes, me too. I have been sexually harassed and sexually assaulted by men. I have been touched and grabbed and pinched. I have had inappropriate comments fly my way by way of cat-calling and have felt discomfort over it. Please, put your tongue back in your mouth and wipe away that smirk. No one is impressed.
I went dancing quite a bit back in my twenties. One night, we were at a club dancing up a storm when a man took it upon himself to come up from behind me and grab my crotch and my breast. He grabbed my body with a force that instantly scared the crap out of me. Somehow he believed that this is was okay; that perhaps I’d like it. My friend was at the bar and I was on my own. Unfortunately no one noticed what was happening until it was too late. Nevertheless, I fought off this sad excuse for a human being by shoving him back as hard as I could and using my already loud voice to demand that fucks off.
It wasn’t until after I fought back that another man noticed that I wasn’t enjoying being manhandled by this creep and came over to see if I was all right. The potential rescuer said he didn’t realize I was being attacked until it was too late. And fair enough. We were, after all, at a club and it’s not unheard of to see people groping each other on the dance floor. How could he know?
I shrugged off this experience as “just another day”. How awful is that? Just another day? That’s a terrible thought, but what was I going to do? He was gone at that point; just another face in the crowd.
This isn’t just my story. It’s every woman’s story. Look at your Facebook feed! It’s filled with #metoo. This is a culture that needs to end.
#METOO
Since the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, women and men everywhere started joining a movement. A movement that lets perpetrators know that we will not be silenced and victims know that they are not alone. I want to help others come forward and not be ashamed, which is why I joined. They, like I, have done nothing wrong.
Me Too
Me too? YOU TOO!
You are the one on the stand, not me. You’re the one who creepily stared at me with your laser eyes borrowing through my soul while you sat in your car playing with yourself at a red light, of all places. I saw you, I did. And I wanted to immediately vomit.
Your’e the one who put your filthy hands on me, thinking that I wanted someone to squeeze my ass, when in reality, I just wanted to get to my destination on the subway untouched.
You’re the one who sent me creepy messages through social media channels trying to get my attention.
You too
People everywhere are lending their support in light of the yet another Hollywood scandal. However, not everyone wants to share their stories, and that’s okay. We have to remember that just because someone doesn’t want to hashtag me too, doesn’t mean he or she hasn’t experienced any kind of harassment or assault. So while we see the numbers rising in support, the numbers are so much greater than we could ever imagine.
Screenshot from a Tweet by Alexis Benveniste
I’ve read some criticisms against the movement and while I see the other side’s point, I will continue to share my voice and be as loud as I can possibly be in the hopes that I can help at least one woman feel less alone. I will continue to share my stories to help bring awareness because, in all honesty, I’m not hopeful about these men taking responsibility for their actions. Sounds negative and pessimistic, but this is where we are in 2017.
#YOUTOO
