After the Harvey Weinstein scandal, a lot of women have come forward and spoken up about their sexual harassment stories. It also set into motion the #MeToo campaign.
Not only did the campaign give courage to people to talk about their stories, we were also able to gauge the magnitude of the problem.
While all in all, it is a positive outcome, it also set into motion a disturbing event. Someone has taken to shaming people allegedly guilty of sexual assault openly.
An open Google Excel sheet is in circulation with the names and other details of people who hold prestigious positions in different fields across the country.
Currently, there are 74 names on it and the number is increasing. There are names from across countries, across nationalities, and across different fields. From the number of victims to the year the alleged harassment happened in, this document is penning down every tiny detail.
While we’re in support of naming and shaming people for their hideous acts, there needs to be tangible proof before we take names on a public forum.
The problem with such a document is that it is anonymous. You send the name and other details to a certain email address and then they add the information to this excel sheet.
Do they ask for proof? Do they ask for a person’s identification? We highly doubt it.
It means that anyone (man or woman) can put someone’s name just for fun’s sake.
Not just that, it also provides downloadable pie charts that show the breakup between states and the places where these sexual assault cases have happened.
How much truth there is to this document and the names mentioned, we cannot ascertain.
While we’re all for transparency and calling out people who commit such hideous acts, we also need to be mindful of the consequences these people might face in real life. They might lose their jobs and their loved ones. In fact, their whole life could be in shambles after you name them on this document.
Do we really want to be responsible for ruining someone’s life? Is this really the answer?
We’re not against people who have been assaulted and we’re not in support of people who have assaulted. However, there are proper channels and a justice system in place to address such issues and bring the guilty to light. That’s the right way to deal with this situation, not by lynching people online.
It’s easy to put someone’s name on a list full of anonymous people, but in the name of feminism are we ready to become like the internet trolls who do and say anything without proof?