#YouToo have seen #MeToo.
Stories of sexual harassment and assault have dominated the cultural conversation for the past week. Hundreds of thousands of women have taken to social media to share that they have been harassed or assaulted by men. Celebrities have used their platforms to hold men accountable for offenses ranging from casual comments to rape.
Activist Tarana Burke first created the campaign a decade ago to create empathy among survivors. The hashtag exploded last week when actor Alyssa Milano encouraged people to tweet experiences following the sexual assault allegations against disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein.
Inside are excerpts from recent celebrity statements. They spoke on Twitter, Instagram, in interviews, in essays. Several made statements at Elle's Women in Hollywood event. Some used the hashtag. Some didn't. Some gave specifics. Some didn't. More are sure to come.
I saw #MeToo and my arm went numb. I thought it was all about me, and when I realized literally hundreds of thousands of people, men and women, (were) talking about being a part of this unfortunate club … it just rips your heart out.
— Gabrielle Union
"I had felt very much alone when these things happened, and I had blamed myself for a lot of it, quite like many of the other women who have shared their stories."
— Lupita Nyong'o
I saw a post about how important it is that men stand up to abusers by a man that I once witnessed assaulting his girlfriend.
— Kimya Dawson
At a time when I was trying to figure out what it meant to become a sexually viable young woman, at every turn some older guy tried to help speed up the process.
— Molly Ringwald
I have my own experiences that have come back to me very vividly. I have found it hard to sleep. So many feelings — anxiety about being honest, guilt for not speaking up, disgust at the director who assaulted me when I was only 16, anger that I was made to feel that silence was a condition of my employment. I wish I could tell you that it was only one incident.
— Reese Witherspoon
We all stood side by side with only paste-ons covering our privates. After that degrading humiliating lineup, the female producer told me I should use the naked photos of myself as inspiration for my diet.
— Jennifer Lawrence
I had a producer spank me as I walked past him in a hallway. I didn't speak up, because I was worried that I might be made un-hireable by dissenting.
— Jessica Chastain
For all these women, women like me and many others, that protection of our womenhood isn't enough, because we're not only women. We're black. We're brown. We are native. We are Asian. We are Muslim. We are queer. We are many things that deserve safe spaces and protection. We can take this moment and enter in with focus.
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Explore all your options— Ava DuVernay
#MeToo. I was 14, he was 36. I may be Deaf, but silence is the last thing you will ever hear from me.
— Marlee Matlin
I told no one and lived with the shame and guilt thinking that I, a 9-year-old child, was somehow responsible for the actions of a grown man.
— America Ferrara
The list so far
Asia Argento
Patricia Arquette
Rosanna Arquette
Kate Berlant
Bjork
Hilarie Burton
Sophia Bush
Gretchen Carlson
Jessica Chastain
Sheryl Crow
Kimya Dawson
Rosario Dawson
Felicia Day
Cara Delevingne
Ava DuVernay
Angie Everhart
America Ferrera
Louisette Geiss
Ilana Glazer
Heather Graham
Ambra Battilana Gutierrez
Isa Dick Hackett
Lauren Holly
Angelina Jolie
Ashley Judd
Lady Gaga
Jennifer Lawrence
Melanie Lynskey
McKayla Maroney
Marlee Matlin
Rose McGowan
Debra Messing
Alyssa Milano
Lupita Nyong'o
Gwyneth Paltrow
Anna Paquin
Sarah Polley
Molly Ringwald
Anika Noni Rose
Léa Seydoux
Amy Siskind
Jenny Slate
Mira Sorvino
Martha Stewart
Amber Tamblyn
Tegan and Sara
Gabrielle Union
Reese Witherspoon
Evan Rachel Wood