Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

The Motion Picture Academy did the right thing by revoking Harvey Weinstein’s membership. The National Organization for Women was one of the first to call for the Academy to remove Harvey Weinstein from their membership roster, and we are gratified they faced their responsibility today. But Hollywood still has a pervasive problem with the systematic abuse of women by powerful men who believe their power and privilege will always protect them.

Every studio, every talent agency, every entertainment lawyer and every business that participates in the “star-making machinery” has an obligation to women—and to humanity—to end the silence that surrounds sexual abuse. It shouldn’t take a Harvey Weinstein to change the way Hollywood deals with abusers. This sort of harassment and criminal assault takes place every day. When people in Hollywood see something, they should say something. It shouldn’t take a newspaper or magazine expose to hold people like Harvey Weinstein accountable.

The Motion Picture Academy made a good start today. But the hard work of changing the culture and holding abusers accountable for their crimes is just beginning.

Contact
M.E. Ficarra, press@now.org, 951-547-1241