This Is The Powerful Reason Why Women Are Posting ‘Me Too’ On Your Timeline

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If you’ve been on Facebook or Twitter in the past 24 hours, you’ve definitely seen it — at least one of the women on your timeline made a status that says “Me too.” Chances are, you’ve seen a lot of women who have.

It all started yesterday when actress Alyssa Milano tweeted, “If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too.’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem.”

Since then, thousands of women have joined the movement and stood together in solidarity to show just how big of a problem sexual harassment really is.

https://twitter.com/DebraMessing/status/919668578357452800

But that’s the thing — though it’s mainly seen as a women’s issue, it’s something many people will go through, including those who don’t identify as femme.

https://twitter.com/n0__f4c3/status/919660142748160000

What this movement shows is that it doesn’t just happen now and then — it happens to nearly every single woman you know. And those are just the people who are willing to talk about it on social media — or, honestly, at all.

Do you know what’s just as bad as finding out how many women who have been sexually harassed? Finding out how many women feel that despite being sexually harassed, they’re “lucky” because at least they haven’t been assaulted.

https://twitter.com/writergeekrhw/status/919679040600006656

Or finding out how many men — and honestly, even women — don’t really take it seriously at all (unless, of course, they have a daughter, sister, wife, etc. who makes them feel like they need to care).

https://twitter.com/mike_mcgb/status/919916704309956608

This is the world we live in — one where nearly every woman you know has experienced something as traumatic as sexual harassment and assault, where the Harvey Weinsteins of the world aren’t as uncommon as you’d think, where even your friends will try to tell you it isn’t a big deal. Where even you convince yourself it’s not a big deal because you don’t want to seem dramatic, because women are taught not to make waves. We are taught to feel shame for what others have done to us, for things that are beyond our control. We can’t let that happen anymore.

So I’ll say it: me too. Me too, me too, me too. I am just one of many. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been sexually harassed, because by now, it just feels so normal — if you’re a woman, it’s just a part of your everyday experience. But why does it have to be?