Victims of sexual harassment abetted the behaviors
As I watch the furor over sexual predation expand through Hollywood, I am left saddened by the scope and duration of the issue. This is 2017. Why do these problems continue?
I have come to see in the reports that a significant part of the problem is due to the failure of those victimized to use the many mechanisms already in place to report perpetrators. What were these victims thinking when they failed to report misbehaviors as severe as rape?
While claiming the problem is pervasive and tolerated, they abetted these behaviors by failing to report them. How do they reconcile their silence with their duty to stop these behaviors to prevent future victims? Even worse, many took settlements rather than reporting criminal activity.
It is hardly a meritorious argument to claim, as many do, that reporting these behaviors would harm their careers. We all make moral choices. We all should accept responsibility for both our actions and failures to act.
This significant problem in our culture requires that we overcome our reluctance to challenge those in power who abuse their positions. Careerists who tolerate these indignities should be recognized for the moral cowards they are.