Alyssa Milano is being credited with starting a viral social media movement encouraging victims of sexual abuse to speak up about their experiences.
The actress, in a tweet Sunday, instructed her followers to reply “me too” to her message if they have been harassed or assaulted.
“Suggested by a friend: ‘If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem,” her post read. It wasn’t immediately clear if the trend was actually sparked by the actress, but it did pick up steam after her message, which received nearly 40,000 replies and 30,000 likes in under 24 hours.
Milano co-starred in the 1998 series “Charmed” alongside Rose McGowan, the most vocal of the women who have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment, rape or assault. Milano has been among several celebrities speaking out about the treatment of women in the industry since The New York Times reported that Weinstein had allegedly paid off eight sexual harassment settlements in the last three decades, McGowan included.
McGowan, Lady Gaga, Debra Messing, Rosario Dawson, Anna Paquin and dozens of other celebrities responded to the call, writing #MeToo and sharing their stories on Twitter.
The social media campaign spread across the globe, with nearly seven million people joining in on the conversation on Facebook Monday afternoon.
Some men who said they were sexual assault victims stepped forward too, including “Hamilton” actor Javier Munoz.
“I don’t know if it means anything coming from a gay man, but it’s happened. Multiple times,” Munoz tweeted.
With Reuters
