Me Too
@DeborahDiane (40055)
Laguna Woods, California
October 18, 2017 4:04pm CST
The phrase #MeToo has been circulating widely on Facebook and Twitter. Between the two sites, millions of women, as well as many men, have revealed that they have been the victims of sexual harassment and abuse.
It has become the opportunity for people to speak out about experiences they have had in their past ... or situations they are currently experiencing.
In my case, like the case of most women I have known, I have experienced multiple incidents of harassment ... from a friend's older brother who exposed himself when I was in elementary school, to bosses who propositioned me and put me in awkward situations.
As the mother of four daughters, one of whom was a professional model in her late teens and early 20s, I have also seem members of my family harassed and made uncomfortable.
The photo above shows an group protesting human trafficking in Laguna Beach. Human trafficking, of course, is an extreme example of sexual abuse, although it affects millions of people around the world, including in the U.S.
It is uncomfortable for all of us to discuss these things. This is a forum where you can share what happened to you in the comments section or, if you do not want to go into detail, you can simply say, "Me Too." We will all understand.
15 people like this
12 responses
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@Kandae11 - I'm so sorry you have experienced that harassment. I hope it is no longer a regular part of your life.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@Kandae11 - I think all of us experience that treatment once in a while. I wish people could just be more respectful of each other, especially when we are on the job. It would make us all more comfortable.
1 person likes this
@Kandae11 (53679)
•
19 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane Not as regular - but I still encounter it.
2 people like this
@sallypup (57869)
• Centralia, Washington
21 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane You have a decent and good hubby.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@sallypup - I agree with you. When my daughters were in elementary school, there were two houses being built on our street. Our daughters, who were just little girls at the time, did not want to walk by the construction sites because of the comments the men would make. I think that was terrible of those men to make little girls so uncomfortable. Even as an adult woman, I don't like it when men catcall or make rude comments when we walk by. Terrible!
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@sallypup - I agree that a lot of the problems we experience are born from a lack of respect for other people, as well as a lack of common decency. My husband told me he went one time to a strip club in Las Vegas with a bunch of other men when he was there for a business conference. He left early. We raised four daughters and he said he couldn't help but think that those young women on the stage were someone's daughter, and it sickened him. I was proud of him for telling me what happened, and for leaving early.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (458091)
• Switzerland
20 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane I also think that this happened to most women. You get unwanted attention and too many men are ready to put their hands on women without waiting for their consent.
3 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@LadyDuck - I hope all the recent publicity will make men think twice before acting like that. Some powerful men have had their careers destroyed by this behavior.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@LadyDuck - I agree that being touched when you do not welcome it is very unpleasant. I think it has happened to most women at one time or another, including me.
3 people like this
@KristenH (33351)
• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
18 Oct 17
It had never happened to me. But according to Kayla Moroney in a Huff Post article, she said her doctor for her Olympics and US Gymnastics Foundation had done to her. She's one of 100+ gymnasts who said he molested her, before and during training. Now he's resigned from both posts.
3 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@KristenH - I heard that same story about Kayla Moroney. It is so awful for a respected doctor to do anything like that to a young year. Terrible!
3 people like this
@KristenH (33351)
• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
19 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane I agree. Shame on him.
3 people like this
@Kandae11 (53679)
•
19 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane I experienced harassment from two different doctors during my life. Thankfully it wasn't rape.
3 people like this
@DianneN (246819)
• United States
20 Oct 17
I posted that days ago on Facebook. I prefer not to talk about the incidents that happened to me. They began when I was a child with the many workers my father hired, continued through college by students and two professors, and my career. The most recent happened by a friend's husband. Now that I think about it, three husbands of friends made uncalled for advances. I'm not even including messages and texts. It is certainly a huge issue!
3 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@DianneN - Yes, there were things that happened to me which I chose not to mention in my post, so I can understand why you prefer not to talk about your incidents of harassment. I think that most of us just get tired of dealing with it, rebuffing men who give us unwanted attention, having to deal with "wandering hands," ignoring suggestive comments, etc. Men need to grow up and take responsibility for their behavior. If they don't, they deserve to lose their careers, especially those careers which put them in positions of power over women.
2 people like this
@DianneN (246819)
• United States
21 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane Yes, definitely. Even Mr. You Know Who!!!!
@Morleyhunt (21737)
• Canada
19 Oct 17
My lot doesn't want me to comment..,it's made me try three times.
I did an informal survey of women I know and I think 3 in 4 of us had been molested in our lifetime...yet on paper they tell us the numbers are 1 in 4. Most is us just put it behind us.
3 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@Morleyhunt - I agree that most people just put it behind them. Often, they don't want to deal with the repercussions of making a fuss about it ... although they never forget what happened!
2 people like this
@TiarasOceanView (70035)
• United States
19 Oct 17
Oh I had not seen this tagline..good it is being exposed. Sorry to hear of you and your daughters harassment too.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@TiarasOceanView - I think this is something which has happened to virtually all women and some men, which is what makes it especially sad. I agree that it is good that it is being exposed.
1 person likes this
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
20 Oct 17
Me too, a neighborhood boy exposed himself to me when I was a young teen, I had a boss who thought that entitled him to put his hands on me, I disabused him quite physically of that notion and it goes on and on.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@BelleStarr - You are the perfect example of what I have seen ... we all have multiple examples of harassment. If it only happened once in a lifetime, that would be one thing. However, most women who have ever spent time in school or worked in nearly any field have had to deal with the same thing. It is very disappointing.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@just4him - I am glad you put it on your status. I think that the vast majority of women, as well as many men, have experienced unwanted touching and other inappropriate conduct by people who are more powerful than they are.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
22 Oct 17
@just4him - I am a lot like you in that respect. I "like" the posts when people share that they like Jesus, as well as similar types of posts. However, I only share things I want to share with our large extended family, and a few friends ... pictures of the grandkids, celebrations and, in some cases, concerns.
1 person likes this
@just4him (306239)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
22 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane I usually don't share things on FB that I see other people telling people to share. Like Share if you love Jesus. I don't feel the need to share that as I know I love Jesus. I'm not certain why I shared that, but I probably won't be sharing anything in the future. It's not who I am. I feel sorry for women who are harassed. That kind of thing needs to stop. I'm glad people can be fined and end up in jail for doing so.
1 person likes this
@Courtlynn (66921)
• United States
19 Oct 17
I think this is a good thing being done. people feel alone and ashamed, so they keep quiet but this makes it so they know they arent alone. And its great.
I hate that some have said its stupid or bad. Yes harrassment isnt as bad as rape, but its not at all okay either and this "movement" is for both not just rape. So it's not stupid.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@Courtlynn - I agree completely. Harassment is not as bad as rape, but it can make a woman feel terrible about herself and cause her to avoid certain situations, which can even undermine her career. It is not OK.
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@YrNemo - I'm glad that you have not had anyone push things too far. It is very uncomfortable when it happens.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@YrNemo - Yes, relationships can be awkward, especially in the beginning. I understand that. I'm glad you have mostly met nice people so far!
@YrNemo (20261)
•
19 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane Looking back, being courted when I didn't give those guys any encouragement, was a bit uncomfortable. But I put myself in their shoes, and I felt dreadful, the fact that they thought I must have been a bit in love with them 
. Some cases were more confused than the other, some deceived themselves, thinking that they were too good for me and I MUST HAVE LOVED them, others just too silly to confuse friendliness for special love... Every time I managed successfully in my polite way to untangle myself from those strange courtings, I felt a bit awful!
Yes, I was lucky to meet nice people so far... 
. Some cases were more confused than the other, some deceived themselves, thinking that they were too good for me and I MUST HAVE LOVED them, others just too silly to confuse friendliness for special love... Every time I managed successfully in my polite way to untangle myself from those strange courtings, I felt a bit awful!
Yes, I was lucky to meet nice people so far... 2 people like this
@Behindtheguitarbar (2831)
• Guangdong, China
19 Oct 17
Believe it or not, today is still a patriarchal society.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Oct 17
@Behindtheguitarbar - I do believe that it is a patriarchal society in many parts of the world, including in a lot of communities in the United States. While many other countries have had women presidents or prime ministers, the United States has not had a female lead our country. Sometimes I wonder if it will ever happen, since so many men do not believe a woman can run a country. It is sad.
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
21 Oct 17
@Behindtheguitarbar - I do hope that I live to see women have more control and power in the world. Right now, women have very little power in most countries.
@Behindtheguitarbar (2831)
• Guangdong, China
20 Oct 17
@DeborahDiane in some day, women can hold half of the world. Some day, in the near future, I do believe that.
1 person likes this
