Lena Dunham Calls On Men Of Hollywood To Speak Out Against Harvey Weinstein
Lena Dunham has spoken out once again against Harvey Weinstein, as allegations of sexual harassment continue to surface.
In an op-ed for The New York Times, the “Girls” creator condemned Weinstein’s behavior and urged the men of Hollywood to speak up in support of the women who’ve come forward with accusations against the producer. She previously spoke out against Weinstein on social media.
“Mr. Weinstein may be the most powerful man in Hollywood to be revealed as a predator, but he’s certainly not the only one who has been allowed to run wild,” Dunham wrote. “His behavior, silently co-signed for decades by employees and collaborators, is a microcosm of what has been happening in Hollywood since always and of what workplace harassment looks like for women everywhere.”
The actress and director made sure to point out the hypocrisy of Hollywood, a “left-leaning industry” that was quick to condemn similar behavior from right-leaning men like Bill O’Reilly, Roger Ailes and President Donald Trump.
“So why the deafening silence, particularly from the industry’s men, when one of our own is outed as having a nasty taste for humiliating and traumatizing women?” she asked.
Dunham went on, writing about her own experience of being sexually harassed by a male director.
″[T]he response by the powers that be was to defend him, question the women ferociously and take ages before letting him go from the network. It was a move based less on his skill than on some ancient loyalty,” she wrote. “It’s that kind of behavior that normalizes this abuse of power.”
Dunham continued:
The reason I am zeroing in on the men is that they have the least to lose and the most power to shift the narrative, and are probably not dealing with the same level of collective and personal trauma around these allegations. But here we are, days later, waiting for Mr. Weinstein’s most powerful collaborators to say something.
The 31-year-old also apologized for choosing to perform at a benefit for Hillary Clinton, which was organized by The Weinstein Company. Dunham admitted she was aware of the rumors about Weinstein, and while she says she felt the appearance betrayed her values, she “so desperately wanted to support Clinton.”
“I’m sorry I shook the hand of someone I knew was not a friend to women in my industry,” she said, before asking, “Men of Hollywood, what are you sorry for? What will you refuse to accept anymore? What will you say to fill the void and change the standard?”
“When we stay silent, we condone behavior that none of us could possibly believe is O.K. (unless you do). When we stay silent, we stay on the same path that led us here,” she wrote. “Making noise is making change. Making change is why we tell stories. We don’t want to have to tell stories like this one again and again. Speak louder.”
Some men in Hollywood have spoken out against Weinstein’s actions. Director Kevin Smith said he felt ashamed knowing Weinstein financed various films during his career, while George Clooney lambasted the Miramax founder’s behavior as “indefensible.” “Guardians Of The Galaxy” director James Gunn also wrote a poignant statement slamming Weinstein and criticizing “everyone who enabled [Weinstein] to get away with such behavior.”
However, many of the producer’s most famous collaborators, like Matt Damon, David O. Russell, Russell Crowe, Quentin Tarantino, Brad Pitt and Bradley Cooper, have remained silent. Reps for these men did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
The damning sexual harassment allegations against Weinstein were first published in a bombshell New York Times article last week. Since it was released, a growing number of female celebrities, including Jennifer Lawrence, Olivia Wilde, Meryl Streep and Glenn Close have slammed the producer’s behavior.
In the wake of the report, Weinstein was fired from his production company. The Weinstein Company also reportedly has plans to change its name and according to Deadline, gave studios the go-ahead to remove Weinstein’s executive producer credit from future TV series and film releases.
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Also on HuffPost
Ashley Judd
She told the Times that she thought, “How do I get out of the room as fast as possible without alienating Harvey Weinstein?”
Gwyneth Paltrow
“I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified,” she said, noting that when Weinstein found out she told her then-boyfriend Brad Pitt, "I thought he was going to fire me."
Angelina Jolie
Kate Winslet
"I had hoped that these kind of stories were just made up rumours, maybe we have all been naïve," she said. "And it makes me so angry. There must be ‘no tolerance’ of this degrading, vile treatment of women in ANY workplace anywhere in the world.”
Meryl Streep
“The disgraceful news about Harvey Weinstein has appalled those of us whose work he championed, and those whose good and worthy causes he supported," she said in a statement.
Rose McGowan
After The Weinstein Company fired Harvey, the actress and director called on the rest of the studio's board to resign.
"They knew," she said in a tweet. "They funded. They advised. They covered up. They must be exposed. They must resign."
Ben Affleck
Actress Rose McGowan denounced Affleck for implying that he didn't know of the abuse before this week, saying that the pair had previously discussed Weinstein's treatment of her.
"You lie," she tweeted.
Lena Dunham
"Abuse, threats and coercion have been the norm for so many women trying to do business or make art," she wrote. "Mr. Weinstein may be the most powerful man in Hollywood to be revealed as a predator, but he’s certainly not the only one who has been allowed to run wild. His behavior, silently co-signed for decades by employees and collaborators, is a microcosm of what has been happening in Hollywood since always and of what workplace harassment looks like for women everywhere."
George Clooney
"A good bunch of people that I know would say, “Yeah, Harvey’s a dog” or “Harvey’s chasing girls,” but again, this is a very different kind of thing," the actor told the Daily Beast. "This is harassment on a very high level. And there’s an argument that everyone is complicit in it. I suppose the argument would be that it’s not just about Hollywood, but about all of us—that every time you see someone using their power and influence to take advantage of someone without power and influence and you don’t speak up, you’re complicit. And there’s no question about that."
Jennifer Lawrence
"I worked with Harvey five years ago, and I did not experience any form of harassment personally, nor did I know about any of these allegations. This kind of abuse is inexcusable and absolutely upsetting," Lawrence said in a statement. "My heart goes out to all of the women affected by these gross actions. And I want to thank them for their bravery to come forward."
Hillary Clinton
Clinton said that she "was shocked and appalled by the revelations about Harvey Weinstein. The behavior described by women coming forward cannot be tolerated. Their courage and the support of others is critical in helping to stop this kind of behavior."
Barack and Michelle Obama
"Michelle and I have been disgusted by the recent reports about Harvey Weinstein," the Obamas said in a statement. "Any man who demeans and degrades women in such fashion needs to be condemned and held accountable, regardless of wealth or status. We should celebrate the courage of women who have come forward to tell these painful stories. And we all need to build a culture -- including by empowering our girls and teaching our boys decency and respect -- so we can make such behavior less prevalent in the future."
Judi Dench
"Whilst there is no doubt that Harvey Weinstein has helped and championed my film career for the past 20 years, I was completely unaware of these offenses which are, of course, horrifying and I offer my sympathy to those who have suffered, and whole-hearted support to those who have spoken out," she said in a statement.
Leonardo DiCaprio
"There is no excuse for sexual harrassment or sexual assault-- no matter who you are and no matter what profession," DiCarpio said in a Facebook Post. "I applaud the strength and courage of the women who came forward and made their voices heard."
Jessica Chastain
"I was warned from the beginning" about Weinstein, she said in a tweet. "The stories were everywhere. To deny that is to create an environment for it to happen again."
Julianne Moore
Colin Firth
“It must have been terrifying for these women to step up and call him out. And horrifying to be subjected to that kind of harassment. I applaud their courage."
Tamron Hall
Blake Lively
The actress said that she was unaware of the abuse but admitted that "it's devastating to hear."
"It's important that women are furious right now. It's important that there is an uprising. It's important that we don't stand for this and that we don't focus on one or two or three or four stories. It's important that we focus on humanity in general and say, 'This is unacceptable.'"
Julia Roberts
Ryan Gosling
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