When people think of sexual harassment, they usually associate it as a female problem. It is important to understand that sexual harassment is an issue that both women and men face.

The U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (The EEOC) provided statistics stating 16.5% of charges alleging sexual harassment in 2017 were filed by men. Despite most claims being produced by women, one cannot ignore the fact men are facing this issue. In American society, if a man claims abuse, people automatically respond with “Why didn’t you fight back?” or they make light of the situation. This makes men less likely to file charges for fear of embarrassment, meaning the rate is most likely higher than 16.5%.

Since the #MeToo movement, multiple male celebrities have come forward about the sexual harassment they have faced in Hollywood. Many have faced great praise for being willing to share their stories, with hopes that more males will eventually have the courage to speak out. Here are a couple of the brave men that have shared their stories:

Whenever I hear Terry Crews I automatically think about his famous role in White Chicks. He is known for being an extremely well built, funny man, so when he tweeted out about his sexual harassment incident from 2016, people were completely shocked. In one of his tweets Crews explained, “Who’s going 2 believe you…R you prepared 2b ostracized…I let it go. And I understand why why many women who this happens to let it go.” It is upsetting that Terry Crews was afraid of being “ostracized” for being sexually assaulted. Terry Crews was groped in the privates by Adam Venit (a talent agent)  at a Hollywood party and he felt he could not do anything because of the way society reacts to men, and women, who have been assaulted (Andrews). What is even sadder is that Venit will not face any legal charges for his actions because the incident falls out of the statute of limitations (Maddaus). A spokes person from L.A City Attorney Mike Feuer went on to explain that “the case exceeded the one-year statute of limitations for misdemeanors,” (Maddaus). The fact Terry Crews, and many other people who have been abused, are not able to find justice because some time has passed from the incident is heartbreaking.

Another celebrity that has unfortunately faced sexual harassment was an actor that I was obsessed with: Brendan Fraser. For those who may not know Fraser, he is most known for his role in The Mummy and older classics such as Encino Man. In a recent interview with GQ, Fraser came out about the horrific moment he faced in 2003 when Philip Berk (ex-president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association) touched him extremely inappropriately (Brendan Fraser). Fraser kept this incident quiet for many years until he finally gained the strength after seeing all the female celebrities coming out. Fraser even stated, “I know Rose [McGowan], I know Ashley [Judd], I know Mira [Sorvino] — I’ve worked with them. I call them friends in my mind. I haven’t spoken to them in years, but they’re my friends. I watched this wonderful movement, these people with the courage to say what I didn’t have the courage to say” (Brendan Fraser). What Brendan Fraser went through, and what has happened because of it, was awful but I am glad he was finally able to shed light about it.

There was one man that has never been quiet about the abuse that goes on throughout Hollywood and that man is Corey Feldman. Feldman was a famous 1980s actor and he is known for his roles in The Goonies  and The Lost Boys. Although he has been a huge advocate about spreading the truth about the dark side of Hollywood, many people did not believe him at all. In 2013 Feldman was on The View and kept explaining the abuse he had encountered during his acting years. Barbra Walters, who was the host, threw back at him “You’re damaging an entire industry!” (Rousselle). Great to know Walters cared more about the industry than the sexual abuse going on. Unfortunately this was not the first time Feldman was dismissed or not taken seriously, as police interviews from 1993 surfaced. During the interview, a detective asked Corey about the abuse he suffered from Josh Grissom (an actor). Corey explained that he was scared to report it and that he was not sure where Grissom exactly was. The detective replied with a laugh saying “If we run across him we’ll let you know” (Dr. Oz). You can listen to the interview here. It is extremely upsetting that people are just beginning to believe Corey because of new movements, after years of being laughed at. Lifetime recently released a movie titled “A Tale of Two Coreys” that is based on Corey Feldman and Corey Haim’s (the other Corey of the 80s) life growing up in Hollywood, and all they endured. Their narratives are finally being told.

Although we are far from all male victims feeling comfortable enough to come out about the sexual abuse they have faced, we are one step closer. Hopefully more movements such as #MeToo and TIME’S UP will come out and we will create a society where everybody feels safe enough to share their stories. American society should thank these brave men who have come out because they are changing the stigma around sexual harassment one story at a time.

*Click photo for source*

Sources: