Episode 58: Going Beyond #MeToo in 2018 (Repeat)

We don’t have a new episode this week as we’re both tied up with work, so we have a repeat of our 40th episode, Going Beyond #MeToo in 2018 — our first episode of 2018 — where we discuss the #MeToo movement and our initial reactions to it. This issue of sexual harassment and sexual assault has been in the news for most of 2017 and 2018, and recently again with Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony against Brett Kavanaugh in the midst of his Supreme Court nomination — accusing him of sexual assault — as well as Grab Indonesia’s mishandling of a sexual harassment case between a customer and a driver. We at Dialogika believe the women, we believe Dr. Ford, and we believe in continuing the fight against the patriarchal landscape which still suppresses and oppresses women everywhere today. We’ll be back in two weeks’ time with a brand new episode, so stay tuned! ----------------------- In this episode, we start off 2018 with a conversation about a topic that has been in the news for the last 3 months or so — the #MeToo movement. We will be talking about our own unique experiences and reactions to the #MeToo movement, and critically discuss both the strengths and weaknesses of #MeToo. We discuss some of the things men can do when the women in their lives confide in them about issues of harassment and assault, as well as things not to do. We also look into why there hasn’t been a similar #MeToo moment in Asia, including in Indonesia — perhaps, in part, because of the conservative and deeply patriarchal societies that exist across the continent, and the substantial backlash (including victim-blaming) that happens whenever someone comes out with their #MeToo story. That said, we are hopeful that Indonesia (and the rest of Asia) will perhaps have something like a #MeToo movement in the future — better yet, a movement where no one would ever need to say “me too” again. That’s our hope for Indonesia in 2018, and we’re excited to continue the conversation and fight!