Beyond #MeToo: What Now After 6 Years of Struggle for Respecting Women

It's been six years since the #MeToo movement shook the world when the New York Times published the Weinstein story, which led to an uprising of women's voices, laws changing, and attitudes shifting. Here we are in late 2023, so where are we now, and the big question: #WhatNow for #MeToo?

The Evolution of Public Awareness and Conversations

I recall, as a young woman having discussions with my friends about whether or not we'd report a rape if we were unlucky enough to experience it. I also recall my father teaching my sisters and me what to do and how to defend ourselves if we were grabbed by a bloke. When I look back, I feel like there was tacit acceptance that women would eventually experience some level of sexual assault on top of the everyday sexism, bias and discrimination we all lived through. 

It turns out that is true in Australia, with one in five women experiencing sexual violence since the age of 15 and, on average, one woman a week murdered by a current or former partner. 

In the early days of my working life (the 1980s), speaking out about inappropriate behaviour, discrimination, or assault was taboo, or at the very least, a career-limiting move if it occurred in the workplace. To be transparent, the behaviour was so ingrained that it wasn't until later in life, when I was more educated and aware, that I realised just how many instances of sexual harassment and assault I had experienced. I know from conversations with other women my age that I am not alone in these disturbing discoveries. 

#MeToo smashed that silence wide open and sparked an overdue global conversation on sexual harassment and gender discrimination. From Hollywood to Hobart, more voices and stories were added. It was bittersweet because, finally, women could voice their experiences. But, for many, myself included, we relived shame and regret. 

Changing the System.

#MeToo didn't just raise voices; it helped to rewrite the rulebook. Or, as I prefer to say, we started attending to a system that enabled perpetrators of violence against women, particularly in the workplace, to be held to account.

Laws against forced arbitration in sexual misconduct cases emerged, throwing a legal lifeline to victims and closer to home in Australia; the Respect@Work legislation was passed, which shifted the onus to employers to create and sustain inclusive and respectful workplaces. 

While there have been legislative efforts to address workplace harassment, such as limiting the use of nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) and managing the "severe or pervasive" standard in harassment cases, these reforms have limitations. For instance, the National Labor Relations Board's (USA)  decision on NDAs does not apply to severance agreements provided to supervisors except in very limited circumstances, leaving many workers unprotected​​. Additionally, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault Act, while a significant step, has a narrow scope and doesn't cover other employment disputes, including those based on gender discrimination​​​​.

A Word of Caution

I'm always cautious about trumpeting how good things have become because, despite promising progress, it still needs to be faster. It still needs to be more cohesive. Some sectors are sprinting ahead, others are barely taking baby steps, and others are characterised by entrenched opposition or, in fact, backlash against DEI. 

The backlash against equal rights for women and other marginalised people is fueled by partisan, conservative legislators, such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who has (in)famously started an anti-woke movement in direct conflict with the gains made by the #MeToo movement. The anti-women misogynist sentiment has been picked up and mobilised by extremist and far-right movements and people like "self-proclaimed misogynist" Andrew Tate, who takes great pride in his views about women being inferior to men, including that women have to take responsibility for being raped. His rise to infamy, enabled by social media, has occurred since the #MeToo movement. 

Being An Active Accomplice to Women

Without a foundation of respect for women, we're just treading water when it comes to addressing the horrifying statistics about violence against women, the continuing gender bias, discrimination and harassment that occurs in workplaces, homes and the misogyny in society amplified by people such as DeSantis and Tate. The foundation of respect for women means actively and loudly rejecting the ideology of the individuals, as mentioned earlier, and the far-right extremists.

 The #MeToo movement, in part, had the objective of helping victims of violence, harassment, discrimination, and everyday sexism understand that they were not alone and that millions were standing in solidarity with them. It invited us to be active accomplices to women. 

You can be an active accomplice to women by:

• Challenge disrespectful behaviour towards women - here's how
• Educate yourself about the disrespect women endure - here's how
• Build your awareness of women's lived experience in your workplace - here's how
• Join the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence - here's how

So there you have it. Six years after #MeToo, there is no doubt that there has been a seismic shift, but the ground is still shaky for women. Perhaps #WhatNow could be our collective call to action? I want to honour women like Tarana Burke, the founder of the Me Too movement, by not just maintaining the momentum but accelerating it by challenging the status quo and demanding respect for women everywhere so that all of us can make the next six years even more transformative.