The Division Between Women
Has the Me Too Movement caused a divide between women on opposing sides?
The Me Too Movement began in 2006 as a form of advocacy for women’s rights in the workplace. It included victims of sexual assault, abuse, and harassment. As a vital source for young black women and girls in low income communities, the movement became a feminist and activist movement, creating social awareness across the world. Although the Me Too Movement’s main purpose is to empower women, there is still a divide between the victims and those who fail to understand the purpose of the movement. Both sources used in this essay argue the depiction and significance of the movement for women on both sides of the spectrum. In the article “The Problems with the #Me Too Movement”, Felicity Chaplin discusses the perspective of women who disagree with the movement and while also sharing how the movement is viewed in the French film industry.
On the contrary, in the article “One Year of #Me Too: The Legacy of Black Women’s Testimonies”, Allyson Hobbs emphasizes the importance of this movement for black women by recounting the story of a rape victim, Anita Hill. The Me Too Movement allows women from every walk of life to tell their story, while building connections of empowerment between women with shared experiences.
To begin, in the article “The Problems in the #Me Too Movement”, Felicity Chaplin discusses the division of women in France that many consider is caused by the Me Too movement. It is believed by many individuals that the movement pushes the feminist “agenda” — with women being able to have sexual freedom whenever they feel, yet are able to claim sexual abuse when they feel victimized or threatened. Many people watching the convictions that have taken place, believe that women who experience rape and sexual harassment as a social group that carries status as a form of empowerment; where there is minimal impact on lower class women in the world. These notions are what cause confusion in society when discussing the importance and relevance of the Me Too Movement. Chaplin further adds to the article with story of a French filmmaker who is wanted in the USA for rape and misconduct.
In October 2017, A Retrospective of Roman Polanski, a film event at a French Cinematheque in Paris raised a protest to ban the 2015 Bridget Sy film L’Astragale from being shown. The protest had been triggered due to Sy being one of many to sign a letter addressed to Le Monde, the French Newspaper, which stood in defense of sexual freedom for men and women. The open letter implies that the Me Too Movement sways the opinion of the press without understanding or hearing the male’s perspective. They believe that the movement pits women against men causing hatred of men and sexuality. This, in reality, is not true. This movement simply allows women who have been assaulted the opportunity to boldly discuss their trauma in the search of true justice.
In the article, Chaplin uses ethos to build credibility through explaining the topic with an unbiased opinion on the subject. Chaplin asks questions that most people want answers to regarding the movement while speaking from an outsider’s perspective. In the article, she says “This debate — if that is what it can be called — is centered around a number of critical distinctions: between rape and harassment, between seduction and coercion, between sex and power, between women as victims and women as empowered, between actors and so-called ‘’real’’ women […]” (Chaplin, 2018, para, 4). In this quote, Chaplin describes the fine line that can be confused without proper, hard facts. With the topic of the Me Too Movement, just like the topic of cultural appropriation, there is never a ‘set-in stone’ argument defining it unless you have personally experienced it. In this quote, Chaplin builds credibility through relating to her reader’s confusion pertaining to topic. Due to the thin line between what is considered assault and harassment, often times as women we find ourselves wondering if a man’s approach or persistence to get our number, for example, is a form of harassment; or, in another instance, if the man that grabbed the lower part of your waist was a form of sexual assault. In the same stead, more times than none, there is no hard copy documentation to support sexual assault allegations, only the individual’s word. This aspect is where Chaplin shares the same conflicting opinions as her readers, especially when those in question are beloved celebrities.
In the magazine article “#Me Too: The Legacy of Black Women’s Testimonies”, Allyson Hobbs details the stories of Anita Hill and other black women during slavery, as well as the time when women — especially black women — were viewed as inferior. The article proves that even before the Me Too Movement, women such as Anita Hill had grown tired of seeing the same thing they experienced happening to other women. Throughout the text, Hobbs discusses the impact that rape, harassment, sexual assault, and abuse has on black women and their families. Anita Hill, a black woman that is a victim of sexual assault, recounts the feeling of suppressing the emotions and traumas that she faced after being raped. After reluctantly telling her parents of her experience, Hill knew that there was truly nothing her parents could do to protect her, being that she was raped by a white man. Furthermore, throughout history, it has been supremely common for black women to be exploited in silence as a means to survive.
Finally in 1944, after being gang raped, Betty Jean Owens decided to speak up and testify against the men who raped her, which led to them being imprisoned for life. It is no coincidence that after such a sentencing, Hill no longer wanted to stay silent about her story. This shows the importance of speaking out, which is the foundation of the Me Too Movement. By one woman coming forward, it impresses many others who have struggled in silence to finally free themselves from the traumas they have experienced in their past.
In this article, Hobbs’ uses logos and pathos to tell Anita Hill’s story about rape. With dates and time periods of event that occured, Hobbs’ details various accounts in the article to build her argument that the #Me Too Movement is a powerful movement, leading to justice being served. She also evokes emotion in this article for black women who have been silenced as a form of survival and for black women who have tried to make it far in life without offering sexual gestures to their male counterparts. In the article, she explains how these occurrences impact black women. “Sexual exploitation has become a part of black women’s collective history and memory. For centuries, white men routinely harassed, abused, humiliated, and raped black women, especially those who worked in white homes as domestic servants” (Hobbs, 2018, para, 9). This quote tugs at the reader’s emotions by giving the understanding of what many black women have — and still do — experience regularly.
During slavery, black women we raped by their oppressors in order to keep their families safe and to win the favor of their master. Moreover, Hobbs made a very important statement in this quote that sexual exploitation is quite prominent amongst black women throughout history (para, 9). Women such as Oprah Winfrey, who was raped when she was four, Gabrielle Union who was raped when she was nineteen, and Lupita N’yongo who was sexually assaulted by Harvey Weinstein in 2017; three powerful black women who have made it far in life but faced the ugly truths the world offers black women on a daily basis.
In conclusion, there are people who agree and disagree with the #Me Too Movement, believing it pushes the feminist agenda. Many people do not understand why the movement is so powerful for women, since they have either have not experienced sexual exploitation or they fail to understand the movement in its entirety. Felicity Chaplin, writer of The Problems with #Me Too Movement, discusses the topic of sexual exploitation and misconduct through a blurred line of what it is versus what it is not. In the least problematic way, Chaplin connects to her readers by raising questions and similar opinions as her readers. On the other hand, Allyson Hobbs details her argument by describing the rape of Anita Hill and Betty Jean Owens in her article One year of #Me Too: The Legacy of Black Women’s Testimonies. She describes the movement perfectly by shedding light on black women being silenced for years as a point of protection for themselves and their families.
In her article, she connects with her readers through educating them through time periods, but also with prevalent black women who have had similar experiences with sexual assault. Overall, I agreed with both writers because they eloquently posed questions needing to be answered while connecting similar stories to what surrounds me daily. These women were able to shine a spotlight on the #Me Too Movement, leading to more answers and clarity surrounding the movement in the future.
