Enough! #TIMESUP .- Activists, citizens, actresses have consolidated the cry of millions of women in an inclusive movement to stop the abuse of women.

#MeToo was born under the leadership of activist Tarana Burke in 2006, more than a decade ago, to raise awareness about the omnipresence of sexual abuse and harassment of women in our society. At that time she did not have the Hollywood media platform, however, actress Alyssa Milano drove the movement into social media in 2017 when several women broke their silence by declaring the abuses of movie producer mogul Harvey Weinstein. Since then, the hashtag began circulating on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, published by women who had experienced any type of sexual abuse or harassment.

The movement with which Tarana Burke wanted to empower women through empathy, got to involve personalities with power, personalities who, already in a privileged environment (read economic power), were lashed out with different types of abuse they endured and they hid to get to where they are now. A similar situation to that experienced by any woman in any work environment: sexual advances, threats of power, lower salary for doing the same job as a man, omission of recognition.

To give an ultimatum to those who continue to overlap this behavior and, worse still, exercising it, on January 7, a group of more than 300 actresses published a manifesto addressed to their “dear sisters.” In this they recognize their privilege to access large platforms and the power that their union means, but, mainly, they contemplate ending inequality in their industry and in all industries where inequality and abuse continue to exist.

“For equity and parity across all industries. For the safety between each worker in each occupation. For the inclusion of all women and marginalized people ”.

Aware of the fear that many victims still have: of people not believing them, of being threatened, ashamed, and of not being able to afford lawyers, the movement has created a foundation that has more than $ 16 million for legal aid . However, its most important goal is to lobby so that the legislation punishes companies that tolerate harassment regularly with financial consequences for not taking any action.

IN ECUADOR (AND LATIN AMERICA) WE USE ANOTHER HASHTAG

In the 2018 Golden Globes, all actresses and actors dressed in black to support the #TimesUp initiative: they took advantage of the red carpet, hundreds of cameras, the thank you speeches and the millions of people around the world who were their audience to deliver the message: “time is up” for abuse, inequity and injustice. A motivating, empowering and global message, but ending in a local action in the United States and focusing on assault or abuse survivors.

In Ecuador, although many of the women participated in the #MeToo or #TimesUp conversation as survivors, there were no specific complaints about people of power. However, there has been a movement for a more alarming issue in our country: feminicide, women who have died from abuse.

We join the cry of #NiUnaMenos, one that was born in Argentina and has since spread to all Latin American countries where femicide numbers continue to rise: the numbers seem to double every year. We join the cry that is a claim against extreme violence against women, it’s announcing that women are being brutally murdered: in front of their children, with slashes, machetes, strangled, blows. It is a cry against the slow death of those who suffer continuous physical and emotional abuse, and a cry that gives voice to those who remain silent out of fear.

It is difficult to ignore these deaths, it should be impossible to ignore that 151 women were victims of femicide in 2017 (CEDHU data) and at least 3 in 2018: every 57 hours a woman dies violently murdered in Ecuador. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility, María Fernanda Espinosa, pledged to eradicate gender violence with the new law although, for the time being, the Comprehensive Organic Law for the Prevention and Eradication of Violence of Gender Against Women is still open to debate and many of it proposals vetoed by the President.

While seeking the guarantee of compliance with the proposed laws, feminist groups continue to demand action and press for a budget to be designated as a real commitment of the State, a security base for those who want to break the silence to save their lives, resources that ensure compliance with the rights of all without leaving aside the LGBTQ community.

We all have to join the conversation and transform it into education. We have to recognize the small ways in which we are contributing to the mistreatment of women and all those who are being marginalized. We have to analyze how our actions may be oppressing another person: by language, by prejudice and discrimination, even ideals and thoughts. It is imperative that we take action to inform ourselves without having to wait for someone to educate us. We owe society to put ourselves in the situation of all those who have been abused, in any way, and stop blaming them for the harm that someone else exercised or exerts on them. Let’s take the time to listen to understand what an injustice feels like, how sexual abuse or harassment feels like, abuse of power, omission of recognition, the salary difference for doing the same job, the expectation that women were born to fulfill tasks at home and nothing else, discrimination. Let us recognize how we are contributing to naturalize these attitudes and let’s change these behaviors. Let us support those who fight for equality, because they are the ones who will improve our world.

Sources:

https://www.timesupnow.com/
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/20/us/me-too-movement-tarana-burke.html
http://justbeinc.wixsite.com/justbeinc/the-me-too-movement-cmml
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2018/01/15/does-aziz-ansari-sexual-misconduct-story-signal-end-metoo-movement.html
https://www.thenation.com/article/the-lefty-critique-of-timesup-is-tired-and-self-defeating/
http://www.elcomercio.com/tendencias/metoo-campana-estrellas-hollywood-acososexual.html
https://infograph.venngage.com/p/355095/femicidio-en-ecuador
https://geografiacriticaecuador.org/2017/11/19/articulo-y-mapa-sobre-los-feminicidios-en-la-hora/

Comisión Ecuménica de Derechos Humanos (CEDHU)

http://www.elcomercio.com/actualidad/asamblea-revisa-veto-ley-violencia.html

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