#MeToo

The ‘Me Too’ movement was founded in 2006 by Tarana Burke to support survivors of sexual violence, particularly young women of color. In October 2017, #MeToo went viral in response to accounts of sexual abuse by film producer Harvey Weinstein.

“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,” tweeted actor Alyssa Milano. Other celebrities then followed with similar experiences to Milano including Gwyneth Paltrow, Ashley Judd, Jennifer Lawrence and Uma Thurman.

‘The Strong Do What They Please’: Dr. Judith Herman on Trump, Trauma and Tyranny

Feminist writers have long argued that there is an intrinsic relationship between patriarchy, rape and colonialism. The seizure of land by force is comparable to the seizure of a woman’s body—and historically rape and war have often gone hand-in-hand. 

In order to get a better understanding of how Donald Trump’s attitudes towards women might be related to his foreign policy, I reached out to Dr. Judith Herman, a world-renowned expert in trauma studies.

“The rules are pretty straightforward: The strong do what they please because they can. The weak submit because they have no other choice. And the bystanders are either complicit or too terrified to intervene, or just don’t care. These are the same rules whether we are talking about international relations or whether we’re talking about intimate personal relations.”

And the Oscar for Best Documentary Should Go to … ‘Black Box Diaries’

Black Box Diaries is a powerful, Oscar-nominated documentary that follows journalist and survivor Shiori Ito’s fight for justice after being raped by a powerful media figure in Japan. Using cinéma vérité techniques, surreptitious audio recordings and intimate self-documentation, Ito exposes the systemic failures that silenced her while capturing the emotional toll of her struggle.

The film highlights the global reach of the #MeToo movement and the stark realities of patriarchal impunity, culminating in a historic victory: the 2023 inclusion of consent in Japan’s rape law.

The ‘Woman in Charge’: Diane von Furstenberg’s Lifelong Commitment to Empowering Women, Fashion and Philanthropy

Though her fame as a designer came through the success of her iconic wrap dress, Diane von Furstenberg has said, “I don’t think I had a vocation for fashion; I had a vocation to be a woman in charge.”

Towards the end of the exhibit—on display at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles until Aug. 31, 2025—a QR code directs visitors to sign up for her more recent innovation: the “InCharge platform,” which serves as “a place to rally, where we use our connections to help all women be the women they want to be.” Its aim urges women to make “first a commitment to ourselves” by “owning who we are” and then to use the platform to “connect, expand, inspire, and advocate.” It is her latest project in a lifetime of advocacy meant to strengthen women.

Feminist Future, or Return of the Strongman? The Young Men’s Vote and the Fate of the Nation

The political commentariat has paid more attention to gender during this campaign cycle—especially masculinity—than ever before.

The roots of this gap preceded Trump’s entrance into presidential politics, but the larger-than-life presence of the misogynous and bombastic blue-collar billionaire has widened and deepened the gap into a chasm. It’s especially notable among 18-29 year-old voters, where a recent Harvard poll showed a 30 point difference between young women and men’s support for Harris.

As we get closer to Election Day, a key question for Democrats is whether Democratic-aligned organizations, and the Harris-Walz campaign itself, can provide substantive policy proposals—like support for entrepreneurship, funding for technical colleges and job training, marijuana decriminalization and “freedom” messaging on abortion rights—and stronger, more assertive messaging that speaks directly to young men.

In ‘One Way Back,’ Christine Blasey Ford Describes Life in the Aftermath

On Sept. 27, 2018, Christine Blasey Ford testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her in 1982. In a beautifully-written and searing new memoir, One Way Back, Blasey Ford recounts her life before, during and after the 1982 sexual assault and her 2018 testimony.

Blasey Ford’s memoir corrects the record, and explains what happened after her testimony.

My Daughter Was Assaulted in a Hospital. Body Cams Could Have Brought Us Justice.

Six people assaulted or aided the assault on my daughter for no medical outcome. Her first experience with penetration in her private area was by an adult male, decades older, who overpowered her and refused to listen to her.

Especially when male doctors are going to be in the vicinity of female private parts, there must be consent, at all ages, at all times. If the ER staff wore body cams, if I had a video of that hospital room to offer as evidence of the sexual assault of a minor—a toddler—as evidence that the Hippocratic oath was breached, then I would be less likely to be seen as a mother overreacting.

Feminists Discuss Trump’s 34 Felony Counts, His Mistreatment of Women and Stormy Daniels’ Revenge

On May 30, 2024, Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts by a New York jury. On the latest episode of On the Issues With Michele Goodwin: Fifteen Minutes of Feminism, Goodwin is joined by Moira Donegan, feminist writer and opinion columnist with the Guardian U.S., to discuss why the New York trial was about more than just “hush money”—it’s about a coverup, election interference and mistreatment of women.

Here are some of our favorite takes from the episode.