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After hearing Geraldo Rivera say that the recent “perv of the day” revelations is ?? criminalizing courtship ??, I could not remain silent anymore. He clearly does not get it and to be honest I don’t think I can truly understand what it means to be sexually harassed without being a woman any more than I can truly understand racism without being black.
It is ironic that we have a President who admitted to sexual assault while there is a groundswell of courage from women all over the USA and other places in the world that are saying “ENOUGH!” This is not about sexual innuendo, friendly banter or certainly not about courtship. What it is about is unwanted assault, the blatant misuse of power and the inalienable right of women to be fully equal members of our community.
When men (or in rarer cases, women) use their position of power as a business person, a personality, a boss or just someone that intimidates to touch, grope and assault it is simply a crime. It is worse when it is this sort of power play where the victim is put into a position of fending off unwanted advances from someone that has some power over them in terms of career, etc.
It really doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know the difference between a welcoming hug or a comforting touch and a grope, grab or an assault. This is not the end of a sexually diverse workplace nor is it the end of men and women being friends in the workplace. It must be the end of those one-sided encounters where strength and power lead to humiliation and discomfort.
I do not think we can effectively criticize cultures where women are treated much more severely if we do not show the way to how men and women should be treated with equality and respect. We need to be the example, and like in so many areas, our leaders are failing. It is those so-called leaders that have misused the trust of those they lead.
I listened to Donald Trump talk about assaulting women on the Access Hollywood tape. He described it as “locker room talk” but I have been in many locker rooms and that would not be acceptable. And I don’t care if it is his “playpen” talk, it is wrong and he should be held accountable just as each of the men accused recently have been. He needs to resign and get some serious counseling before he blows us all up.
I have always been around strong women, starting with my mom who would have been very angry about this but also my wife, my daughters and all of my employees have a strong sense of self-worth. Feminists? I sure hope so! Women gained the vote less than 100 years ago, women in Saudi Arabia have just been allowed to drive. That is not progress, this is a travesty, women deserve equality in every way, in every land, right now.
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