OR WHEN THE WOMAN IS FORCED TO ACCEPT THE SEXUAL OFFER DESPITE NOT WANTING IT, AS IN THE CASE OF THE ABUSES OF DIRECTOR WEINSTEIN IN HOLLYWOOD
According to some historians, the young people of Ancient Rome used to rape a virgin as a rite of initiation into adulthood. This practice was part of a custom, where the most powerful appropriated objects -including people, such as women and slaves- to gain a privileged rank in society. Since then, sexual harassment and abuse have not only normalized in our society; They have also become a tool of power. For this reason, campaigns such as “No es no” take place in favor of gender equality and the prevention of femicides.
However, this type of campaign prevents elucidating situations where consent is granted through extortion, that is, women are forced to accept the sexual offer despite not wanting it. An example of this is the controversial situation between the directors in Hollywood -mainly the case of Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey- or the prostitution catalog of the actresses of Televisa.
The causes of this are derived from a socio-economic crisis and inequality, where women are thought of as a sexual object-a thing that can be grasped and thrown away and they are forced to sustain themselves with a lower income than they should be to receive. That is, when a woman is faced with the need to support her family and maintain monetary solvency or professional development, she is forced to consent to the harassment of a superior character.
In the context of these conditions, meetings were held for decades between the director and producer Weinstein and actresses developing their professional careers, in the hotel room of the former. In case they rejected the producer’s sexual offer, they were threatened with losing their job or being banned from other films.
It is essential to carry out a series of actions to reduce and prevent the normalization of sexual harassment, extortion, and abuse. From the beginning, we must be aware of the situation at risk in which people who do not enjoy privileges of power – such as women, indigenous people, Afro-descendants …-; reduce the consumption of products that were made under extortion, harassment or any situation of abuse; know and begin to demand the fulfillment of rights in favor of equity; or take a stand against behaviors that promote socioeconomic inequality between individuals.
After all, why seek a world where the collective crisis encourages sex to be a struggle for power and not a source of pleasure?
