In the wake of the numerous cases swirling around Hollywood, over 300 women in the entertainment industry have banded together to form an initiative combating sexual harassment not only in their industry, but across various workplaces.
The group not only includes the likes of Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Streep, Rashida Jones, and Eva Longoria, but also producers, writers, and agents. In an open letter released on Monday, the initiative pledges support to Time’s Up, a volunteer-run organization formed after the #MeToo movement drove women to share their harassment stories. So far, Time’s Up has a $13 million defense fund set up so that women can protect themselves from the repercussions of reporting abuse in the workplace.
“It’s very hard for us to speak righteously about the rest of anything if we haven’t cleaned our own house,” said Shonda Rhimes in an interview with the New York Times. “If this group of women can’t fight for a model for other women who don’t have as much power and privilege, then who can?”
To further show a desire to clean up Hollywood, Time’s Up will also be pushing for gender pay parity in movies and TV show productions, and is encouraging Golden Globe attendees to wear black in protest of racial and gender inequality in the entertainment industry.
Rhimes went on to add “We’re a bunch of women used to getting stuff done. And we’re getting stuff done.”
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