Former Hollywood producer and influential kingpin, Harvey Weinstein, was found guilty by a jury on February 24, 2019, on charges of two sex crimes: a criminal sexual act in the first degree and rape in the third degree.
Weinstein, 67, was acquitted on two counts of predatory sexual assault. He still faces rape and sexual battery charges in Los Angeles and many civil lawsuits.
Weinstein’s sentencing is scheduled for March 11, 2020.
Who Accused Weinstein?
One of the women who accused Weinstein was former production assistant, Miriam ‘Mimi’ Haleyi, who had earlier worked for him. Haleyi claimed that Weinstein assaulted her at his apartment in 2006. The jury found Weinstein guilty of forcing a sex act on the woman.
The woman whose allegations resulted in Weinstein being charged with rape in the third degree is Jessica Mann – the charge coming with sentencing guidelines of probation up to four years.
The district attorney of Manhattan, Cy Vance, said at a press conference that the case and the women who raised their voice and testified against Weinstein ‘pulled our justice system into the 21st century.’
In 2015, Ambra Battilana Gutierrez reported that Weinstein had groped her.
To all the charges, Weinstein pleaded not guilty by stating that the sexual encounters were consensual.
Four other women testified to demonstrate a pattern of sexual predation.
#MeToo Failed In India
Harvey Weinstein’s arrest is an across-the-board victory for all survivors of sexual assault. A major boost was brought about in the #MeToo movement by the women who came forward to raise their voices against the studio boss who was once feared for his position of power in the industry.
The #MeToo movement took off in India with actress Tanushree Dutta speaking up against actor Nana Patekar of sexually harassing her in 2009.
The strength of her story led to scores of women raising their voices against their harassers, calling out the male-dominated country like never before.
In India, unfortunately, little has been done to bring all the accused to justice. The movement that was supposed to put these men behind bars, itself became caged.
Accused Like Nana Patekar, Anu Malik, and former Minister of State for External Affairs Mobasher Jawed (M.J) Akbar now roam free.
Friends and family of actor Sajid Khan, who was accused of sexual harassment, supported him. In fact, actor Chunky Pandey called him a ‘brother’ and said ‘it was the season of #MeToo.’
Despite a number of misconduct claims against Kiran Nagarkar, Juggernaut Books defended its decision to publish his novel.
#MeToo sure was the beginning of a revolution, but in India, little has been done to give justice to the women who dared to speak up against people in power positions.
Also Read: Good Touch Vs Bad: This NGO Is Teaching Children To Identify Sexual Abuse
