I was in college when Harvey Weinstein was accused by over 100 women of assault and #MeToo took over the Indian internet. It took courage to speak out against Weinstein in 2017. Seven years later, that courage has been destroyed. A New York appeals court has overturned the Hollywood producer’s conviction. Out of all the hashtags that gave women a voice – #MeToo, #TimesUp, #BelieveSurvivors – one rings louder than the rest now: #WhyIDidntReport.
The significance of the Weinstein case goes beyond the US. The allegations against him set off a global movement. Women and girls began speaking up against men who had violated them, even if it was several years ago, even if they did not expect justice in return. But speaking up wasn’t easy. One question followed them around– ‘Why didn’t you speak up then?’
We struggled to explain to men that the system is not kind to women who come forward, that they only needed to look at their own dismissive remarks for proof. Yet we persisted, taking comfort in finding a community that had sprung up and kept growing.
But the allegations against Weinstein were a shout in the dark and we mistook the echoes of our own voices as progress. It’s only now that the reply has come.
Perhaps this recent decision will show that even if 100 women come out against one man, “due process” fails the survivor. And if public figures with wealth, power and fame on their side cannot get justice, where does that leave the rest of us?
Speaking up is tougher in India
In 2017, my social media and WhatsApp chats were filled with lists—of college professors accused of sexual assault, of companies to avoid because predators were in charge, of neighbourhoods to steer clear of. But these accusations were mostly anonymous, and barely, if at all, entered the legal realm.
Even back then, women realised that speaking up would only forge solidarity and offer catharsis, not much else. India’s stringent defamation laws made it even harder. While the First Amendment protected American women, in India, an inability to prove allegations carried a hefty price – up to two years behind bars.
It’s no wonder then that the biggest legal win in India’s #MeToo movement was not a conviction in a rape or assualt case but the dismissal of the defamation case filed by MJ Akbar against Priya Ramani— the politician was accused of sexual harassment by the journalist.
Also read: It’s time we believed sexual assault survivors because perpetrators rarely say #ItWasMe
Social noose against legal loophole
Proving assault is not easy. Not least because it’s one person’s word against someone else. The decision made by the New York Court of Appeals is legally sound. And this makes it scarier.
Katherine Kendall, an actress and one of Weinstein’s accusers, told the New York Times that she was stunned by the decision. It’s “a terrible reminder that victims of sexual assault just don’t get justice,” she said.
While Weinstein is still in jail due to his conviction in a rape case, Kendall added that he will “never be free because his name is synonymous with sexual assault”.
Justice is not something that only the courts can give and perhaps that should be the real takeaway. Keep calling out your abusers on public platforms and let them feel the heat. Social nooses are tighter than legal loopholes.
Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)