A look at how the #MeToo Movement has shaped sexual assault awareness
- Destinee Patterson
- April 23, 2021
- KSLA News 12
SHREVEPORT, La. (KSLA) – The #MeToo Movement sent shockwaves through social media in 2018, however, it began in 2006.
Now, in 2021, KSLA News 12′s Destinee Patterson sat down with sexual assault allies and activists about how it has shaped awareness around the issue.
“I think, like with anything, the #MeToo Movement has been taken out of context,” Project Celebration executive director Angela Henderson said. “I’ve heard people made jokes about it…but they don’t know the impact that it has had on people who have been victims of sexual violence.”
It has been more than a decade since the inception of the movement. She said she believes people have started to forget the substance of the movement over time.
“Clearly, everything doesn’t require you saying, ‘#metoo.’ I think if the community gets an understanding, that they’ll understand the prevalence of ‘#metoo.’”
On the other hand, she said the movement has helped bring awareness to little known statistics.
“Every 73 seconds someone is sexually abused in the United States,” Henderson said.
Just Detention International communications director Jesse Lerner-Kinglake said incarcerated people are often overlooked in conversations of sexual assault. In some aspects, the #MeToo Movement included – and in other ways, neglected – this demographic.
“I think that that’s something the #MeToo movement has done a really good job of, is being more inclusive,” Lerner-Kinglake said. “One of the limits is that social media is a very powerful tool. As many of us know, if you are incarcerated, you don’t have access to Facebook or Twitter.”
If you or someone you know needs sexual assault resources, visit the Project Celebration website or call/chat the RAINN hotline at 800-656-4673.
For incarcerated resources, visit the Just Detention International website.
Originally posted here