The Time’s Up initiative is dedicated in helping women dealing with sexual harassment in the workforce and raised awareness for the issue by asking everyone attending the Golden Globes to dress in all-black. Actresses were asking their stylists to recreate their original outfits in black and some even wore specially made pins and looked for black accessories to match. The point was to raise awareness and stand in solidarity with all the women who have to deal with this sad reality.
Oprah Winfrey delivered an acceptance speech for the Cecil B. DeMille award that spoke well on what the movement was all about. “For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dare speak the truth to the power of those men. But their time is up. Their time is up,” she said.
The hashtag, #timesup, was everywhere on social media to relay the message to as much people as possible. Quite notably was Rowan Blanchard, a Disney star, who always speaks her mind on feminism and delivers her message to younger and older audiences alike. This is an example of the role of the media and fame in raising awareness in important issues such as sexual assault and harassment.
“The media and celebrities undoubtedly have a wide range of influence and [have] a large audience that they can speak toward” said Jonathan Lacroix, a senior.
Lacroix felt it was a subtle way to get the point across without disrupting the event. Furthermore, issues like this should be discussed in schools. “Education is the first step to prevention,” said Lacroix.
Victoria Persaud felt as if it wasn’t nearly enough to make an impact. “There is a possibility that celebrities are doing it because their publicist made them. Dressing up in a color is a step, but it is not enough to fix this issue.”
The Time’s Up website has a few statistics up, including the statistic that “1 in 3 women ages 18 to 34 have been sexually harassed at work. 71% of those women said they did not report it.” This alarming statistic was what it was all about at the Golden Globes. They were hoping to raise awareness so that more people can donate to the cause, which has its own legal defense fund on GoFundMe. (https://www.gofundme.com/timesup).
