On Wednesday, March 11, Harvey Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison. As many of you probably know, Weinstein was an accomplished movie producer who began to lose his status in 2017 when multiple women came forward and accused him of sexual assault and rape. This somewhat led to the beginning of the Time’s Up movement (connected to the #MeToo movement), as many more individuals were inspired to come forward and report incidents that occurred while working in the film industry and other business settings.
Over the course of the five-week trial in New York, multiple women testified against him, including Miriam Haley and Jessica Mann. Weinstein was ultimately found guilty of a felony sexual attack and third-degree rape. His sentence of 23 years means that Weinstein, who is 67 and in questionable health, will most likely die in prison if the sentence remains. His defense lawyers argued that 23 years is equivalent to a life sentence in Weinstein’s case, and hope to reduce his sentence or make an appeal.
Overall the trial was an extremely emotional one. During Haley and Mann’s testimonies, some jurors were seen with tears in their eyes as the women recounted the terrible things that happened to them. Weinstein did not testify in court himself, although when given time to speak, he never apologized. Instead, he mentioned feeling remorseful and compared his situation to that of the Red Scare, when Hollywood celebrities were blacklisted. I think this is an odd comparison, as what Weinstein did was extremely illegal and terrible, and many women have come forward, further confirming Weinstein’s awful actions. However, throughout the trial, Weinstein stood by his claim that the incidents with the women were all consensual, although evidence and testimony proved otherwise.
I agree with the court’s ruling, I believe that Weinstein should pay for the crimes he committed. Miriam Haley described in her testimony the struggles she faced following her encounter with Weinstein, and it is clear that his actions destroyed parts of her life, parts that she is still trying to recover from to this day. Not to mention, the numerous women attacked by Weinstein deserve justice for what he did to them.
- Do you agree with Weinstein’s sentence?
- How do you think Weinstein’s conviction will further the #MeToo/time’s Up movements?
5 comments:
I agree that Weinstein should be sentenced to prison for the rest of his life. I understand that sexual assault cases can be very controversial and difficult regarding evidence, etc. But I think anyone who abuses another human being in that way deserves punishment. I think the conviction will bring some triumph to the #MeToo/Time's Up movements, and will hopefully encourage more people to come forward and speak out about their experiences; this is an incredibly important issue and it's often regarded as "over-the-top," or I've heard the argument that people are lying about their experiences. While I can't disagree with the latter, sexual assault is a very sensitive topic, and everyone approaches it in a different way. I think that by supporting these people and the movements is a really important way of standing up to the group of people who commit these horrendous crimes.
I believe 23 years is the minimum amount of time Weinstein should face in jail. Despite the warnings of people around him, he continued to abuse these women and his power. The trauma Weinstein put on these women debilitated them mentally and ruined some of their careers. He should face the repercussions of his actions. I do think that the #MeToo movement will gain even more credibility now that the courts have taken the survivors' side. Abusers that previously ignored the stories of their victims have to be more receptive to change now that they know that they too can face jail time for their actions. The complaints people make to their company or organization about sexual harassment in the workplace will hopefully be taken more seriously.
I believe Weinstein will most likely die in prison with a 23 year conviction, for his health has deteriorated significantly. Because of this likelihood, I think a 23 year sentence is sufficient for his crimes. Weinstein in our current society is seen as a monster, a monster who continuously abused woman and used his power to obtain control over them. He is a symbol of a past where woman had to sexualize themselves and please those at the top to make it in their career. I think with Weinstein in jail, it is a symbolic message that these times are over for woman. The MeToo movement not only brought to light the hardships women have been facing for centuries, but it gave women more power because it told society that women are no longer going to withstand this type of treatment. While sexism is still widely prevalent in America, movement such as the MeToo movements are steps forward to a more equal society.
I agree with the Weinstein's 23 year sentence. He committed multiple acts of rape and has damaged several women lives. He deserves to face the consequences for his actions and that means that he will have deal with possibly dying in prison. His conviction will help the movements because several other women have already spoken and lots of celebrities have shared their stories as well. Although it has slowed down today, I believe that there will be another wave where women will speak up and people like Weinstein will be brought out.
I believe the sentence given to Harvey Weinstein is justified as it is long enough that would keep him in jail. Even though his sentence itself should be a little longer, it is a good number for him as he would most likely pass away before even having a chance to leave. While reading this blog, I thought about how prisons and jails were doing and what they were doing to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus. But anyways, Harvey Weinstein has already made a big impact in many women's lives and it was good that he was stopped. Similar to what other people have said, I hope women and companies use this as a learning example to be cautious of these things. Sexual assault and the other categories around it are a serious problem in the world and we need all hands on deck in order to stop this.
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