In Naomi Alderman’s novel The Power, girls around the world suddenly and mysteriously gain the ability to electrocute people. At first governments think they can contain it, but soon the relationship between men and women begins to shift rapidly. A global revolution follows in which women, now physically dominant, topple patriarchal institutions like dominoes.
Five days before Alderman’s book was published in the USA, the New York Times reported allegations of sexual harassment and assault against film producer Harvey Weinstein. Five days after it was published, the hashtag #MeToo went viral. And two months after that, Time magazine named “the silence breakers”, women who spoke out about abuse, assault and rape, as its “person of the year”. A global revolution has indeed begun - though where it is going nobody yet knows.
From its origins in the US, the impact of the movement spread rapidly, with millions of women around the world sharing their own stories of rape, assault and harassment in the workplace. Most cases will never meet the public eye in the way the Weinstein scandal did, with its rota of famous faces coming forward day after day to deliver lurid and disturbing details of the director’s alleged predatory behaviour. But a glance at local media reports reveals that almost every country in the world has had its own #MeToo moment: From Britain’s Westminster scandal to “Australia’s Weinstein” Don Burke and journalist Shiori Ito’s unprecedented public discussion about her alleged rapist in Japan.
The phrase “Me Too” was first used by activist Tarana Burke 10 years ago in a grassroots campaign to reach underprivileged girls dealing with sexual abuse. But it became an overnight phenomenon after actress Alyssa Milano encouraged victims of sexual abuse to tweet #MeToo as a way to show the world a “sense of the magnitude of the problem” following the Weinstein scandal. By the time she woke up the next day, thousands had responded. Within weeks it was more than a million.
As a viral campaign, part of the success of #MeToo was to do with how deeply personal it felt. Within days our social media feeds were flooded with friends and family members adding their stories. “Of course, me too,” a friend added simply on Facebook, neatly summarising the depressing inevitability that she too had experienced sexual harassment. The women mostly exchanged familiar stories and knowing looks. Surprise was the domain of men: “I knew it happened, but I had no idea it was this bad” was a common sentiment.
In Spain it became #YoTambien, in France it became #BalanceTonPorc, roughly translated as “expose your pig”; in Italy #quellavoltache (“That Time When”). In Israel, a Hebrew phrase translated as “Us Too”. In China, where Facebook is blocked, posts appeared briefly on local social media channels before being ripped down by censors.
In Japan, journalist Shiori Ito did “the unthinkable” when she appeared before television cameras in May 2017 to publicly accuse a prominent correspondent of rape. At the time she only used her first name, but in late October, amid the explosion of #MeToo confessions, she revealed her full identity and published a book about her experience. In an article for Politico she wrote that it is taboo to even use the word “rape” in Japan and it is often changed to “violated” or “tricked”. “My coming forward made national news and shocked the public,” she wrote. “The backlash hit me hard. I was vilified on social media and received hate messages and emails and calls from unknown numbers. I was called a “slut” and “prostitute” and told I should ‘be dead’.” But Ito believed she had no other choice. She said #MeToo has provided an opening in the Japanese media to discuss sexual harassment and assault.
Meanwhile in Australia, television personality Don Burke, a household name from his long-running gardening programme Burke’s Backyard, was about to be exposed by allegations of bullying and harassment of women who worked with him over two decades. Among them was eight-time Olympic gold medallist Susie O’Neill, who claimed Burke compared her genitals to a painting of a flower by her husband. “Is your c**t as big as that?”, she said he asked her during a visit to her Brisbane home ahead of the 2000 Olympics.
Burke has denied all allegations of sexual harassment, but admitted he “might have terrified a few people” because he was a tough taskmaster.
Allegations against Burke came to light after journalist Tracey Spicer, inspired by #MeToo, put a call out on social media for women who had experienced sexual harassment in the Australian media. The response was so great (she terms it “a tsunami of injustice”) that she worked with the country’s media union to set up a kind of triage service for the hundreds of replies she received, directing people towards counselling, legal and police support, before hearing their stories. Before the dust could settle on the Burke allegations, Neighbours actor Craig McLachlan was also accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women who worked with him on the Australian Rocky Horror show (allegations he denies and plans to fight).
“Globalisation, connectivity and the women's rights movement have created the perfect storm,” Spicer told the Telegraph. “Women are able to share their experiences, from Sydney to Suffolk. “Suddenly, we realise we're not alone. And our experiences are being believed. For the first time, men are understanding what women have suffered for centuries.”
The Australian cases have been highly organised, with senior journalists and several media organisations directing investigations and filtering and verifying the information. But they highlight a common theme emerging around the world - the way in which women are now using social media to network and share information about sexual harassment, usually under the radar, before coming forward as a united front against repeat offenders.
Spicer said online networks had “changed everything. “Almost all of the whistleblowers who've approached me do so via Twitter (direct message) or Facebook (private message) before a phone or email conversation,” she said. “Our personal devices are such an intimate part of our lives, these women feel comfortable using social mediums - at any time of the day or night - to share details about these experiences. And it's easy to connect with other alleged victims. For example, in the Don Burke case, the first whistleblower was able to easily connect me with two women in the US.”
