Writer Anne T Donahue gets huge response after telling of her own experience with a boss at a radio station

The Canadian writer whose tweets about Harvey Weinstein prompted a huge response from other people who shared online their stories of sexual assault and harassment has said she was blown away by the reaction she received.

Weinstein has been fired from The Weinstein Company after a slew of sexual harassment allegations emerged last week in a New York Times exposé. It was alleged that the Hollywood mogul, who produced films including Pulp Fiction and Gangs of New York, had reached at least eight settlements with women he sexually harassed, from as far back as 1990 to as recently as 2015.

Shortly after publication of the story, one writer, Anne T Donahue, wrote a series of tweets about her own experiences with abuse of power.



Donahue, 32, said that when she was 17 her boss at a radio station insisted on massaging her shoulders as she typed “and liked to [tell] me things like why ‘girls my age’ liked giving blow jobs and not having sex”. She prefaced the tweets with: “When did you meet YOUR Harvey Weinstein?” and at the time of writing has received more than 4,000 replies and 11,000 likes.

In the Twitter replies that followed, a composer recalled being serenaded by a Mensa treasurer when she was 17, a radio host recalled how she was trapped in a bathroom by a co-worker who “still has a job” and a food journalist told of a “grabby” driving instructor who blackmailed girls into kissing him. One woman recalled how when she was 16, her “50+ history teacher called me into his classroom (alone) and breathily told me I looked ‘stunning’”, while another said that while working on an indie film as a college student, a producer “shoved his hand down my pants”.



More and more people began sharing their stories on Twitter using the hashtag #MyHarveyWeinstein, and countless others contacted Donahue privately.

“Within a couple of minutes it was just like a tidal wave,” Donahue told the Guardian. “That was incredible. When you have thousands of other people coming forward to share too, they’re creating a space where it makes it OK to talk. I think when it comes to rape culture the stigma is that it’s your fault, you’re the one asking for it, you’re the one it happened to. So there’s power in numbers.

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“The generosity of everyone sharing has blown me away. And it hasn’t just been women, a lot of men have been sharing their stories as well.”



Rose McGowan, one of the actors who reportedly settled a lawsuit with Weinstein several years ago, was one of many tweeting about female empowerment. “Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies,” she said.

Ann Olivarius (@AnnOlivarius) I'm an feminist lawyer, specializing in sexual harassment. EVERY week I hear a new #myharveyweinstein. Trust other women. Help other women

PeteytheChi (@PeteytheChi) #myharveyweinstein was Director at federal agency who demanded female employees accept his "greeting kiss." I was 21 and horrified.

In the NYT article, women shared their stories of how Weinstein allegedly invited them to his hotel room under the guise of work, only to greet them naked or ask them to massage him or watch him shower. They suggested that the alleged sexual harassment was exacerbated by an imbalance of power.

Weinstein was a champion of liberal causes and a major donor to the Democratic party. While the news came as a bombshell, some suggested that they were particularly alarmed by the fact that the allegations – referred to as an “open secret” in the industry – had accumulated for almost three decades. “I cannot believe I’m actually reading the story I’ve been expecting to read for 17 years,” a journalist wrote.

“That’s how rape culture works, it happens and happens and we allow it,” Donahue said. “Powerful people can find ways of not facing consequences. Weinstein evading consequence for three decades is indicative of that … I think we all know people who are still getting away with things.

“It can be really scary to call out what’s become a norm … but by verbalising, communicating and supporting, we call out and call attention to toxicity.”

Weinstein has expressed regret for his inappropriate behaviour towards women stretching back decades, saying, “I own my mistakes,” but his lawyers say he also denies many of the allegations made against him.