Ashley Judd is truly a woman of substance. She has always been a strong advocate fighting against sexual harassment. Her willingness to promulgate the downright disgusting conduct of Hollywood heavyweight Harvey Weinstein has earned her widespread respect.
Naming and Shaming the Mighty Magnate
Judd was probably the first big Hollywood star to come out openly against Weinstein’s behavior. Stories about Weinstein’s “inappropriate” behavior have been making the rounds for many years. However, it was only in late 2017 that accusations against him snowballed to bring his eventual downfall.
When asked why she did it, her reply was, “I did it because it was the right thing to do.”
Judd revealed the detailed account of how Weinstein tried to force himself on her. Weinstein had invited Judd to his hotel room for a business meeting. After an unpleasant surprise, Judd repeatedly told him no, but being the lecher that he is, Weinstein was unyielding. Finally, he let her go after she deftly handled the situation promising what he wants only after she wins an Oscar in one of his movies.
Over 90 women have since spoken out against Weinstein’s misdeeds, including other big Hollywood actresses such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie and Salma Hayek. Eventually, The Weinstein Company fired Harvey Weinstein.
Judd had earlier said, “I want to talk about how it’s not about sex, it’s about power.” And she is absolutely right. Intoxicated with power, men like Weinstein think they can exhibit their nauseating behavior with impunity.
Earlier this week at an event at Sundance Film Festival, Judd had admitted she was risking a lot by speaking against Harvey Weinstein. “I have to know the hill on which I’m willing to die and that hill is equality.” says Judd. She further adds, “If this means going to jail, being maligned, being defamed, and having tremendous economic loss because I stood up to Harvey Weinstein, with the incalculable amount of money I could have made but didn’t, that’s the hill I’m willing to die on.”
Her First Screen Test
Judd also revealed how at her first screen test, she was asked to take off her shirt. Judd says, “It was between another woman and me. I said that isn’t about our acting, that’s about evaluating a pair of breasts. And the answer was not just a ‘no’ but ‘hell no.’”
Braving Misogynistic Trolls Vitriol
In an incident in March 2015, Judd found herself facing a barrage of hateful, misogynist, loathsome tweets. Judd had simple tweeted saying the University of Arkansas was playing dirty against the University of Kentucky in SEC basketball championship match. The University of Kentucky is Judd’s alma mater.
What unfortunately followed was wave after wave of gender-based verbal violence and misogyny. Ashley was stunned seeing so much hatred spewed against her.
In reply to all the hatred, Judd wrote a strong response in the form of an essay. She wrote, “’The volume of hatred that exploded at me in response was staggering.” She further adds, “What happened to me is the devastating social norm experienced by millions of girls and women on the Internet. Online harassers use the slightest excuse (or no excuse at all) to dismember our personhood.”
Overcoming the Trauma of a Troubled Childhood
Judd had faced molestation, sexual assault and violence as early as age 15. And the incidents of sexual misconduct and exploitation had unfortunately kept up in later years as well. All along, Judd had been suffering alone, silent battle where she felt shamed for no fault of her own.
Slowly, over the years, she gained the courage to wage her war against the deplorable behavior she had faced for so long. She has been brave enough to share her story with the world. Her process of recovery from such a troubled past has been long and tough. She wrote, “The nature of recovering from trauma is that it can be ongoing, with deeper levels of healing and freedom coming with indefatigable persistence to keep chipping away at it.”
Ashley Judd’s Exemplary Stand
Judd strongly advocates how sexual predators must be publicly named and shamed. Her stoic stand against the mighty Harvey Weinstein is a solid proof. By doing that, she inspired a lot of other people, including Hollywood stars, to come out and shame Weinstein. Judd’s revelation would go a long way to stop such sexual predators in their tracks. Ashley Judd has also helped further promote the #MeToo and #TimesUp tag which have brought millions of victims united against the abominable behavior of monsters among us. Judd was also named by the TIME magazine as a Person of the Year.
Ashley Judd persevered through her long, difficult period of sexual harassment and finally coming out openly against it. She has exhibited the spirit of Strive by doing the uncomfortable.
