© Media Watch 9 (3) 267-277, 2018
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2018/v9i1/49484
Feminist Perspectives on the Apology of Louis CK and the #MeToo and #TimesUp Movements
HELEANA THEIXOS
Abstract
The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements are sexual misconduct survivor movements, interrogating in particular the entertainment and media industries. These movements aim to dismantle power structures in these industries by raising-up systemically silenced voices of victims (survivors) of sexual misconduct. I analyze comedian Louis CK’s apology for his own sexual misconduct as an exemplar text, and argue that that there are good feminist reasons for these movements to critically engage with his perpetrator statement. As such, the argument that I propose here-that certain perpetrator explanations are legitimate to these movements-is tendentious. I will support my argument by making an appeal to feminist social theory, which focuses on the cultural factors contributing to sexual misconduct. If my argument is compelling, then other perpetrator statements could also be integral to the movement’s aims.
Keywords: Sexual misconduct activism, #MeToo, #TimesUp, Harvey Weinstein, feminist philosophy, perpetrator statements
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Dr. Heleana Theixos is an adjunct professor of Philosophy in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Heidelberg University, USA. She holds a PhD in Ethics from the University of Miami. Her research areas are: virtue ethics and medical humanities, with a focus on moral injury in ancient and contemporary ethics.