It is a not uncommon assumption that sexual harassment victims are always women. This fallacy lays in the common gender roles that women and men have assumed through history, where women traditionally held positions under or serving men who held more prestigious roles. Though stories of male victims of sexual harassment are not as ubiquitous as those of accounts from female victims, one famous male actor has taken it upon himself to tell his story of sexual harassment in his employment industry.
Terry Crews shared the story of being groped by a powerful Hollywood agent while attending an industry function. He has been criticized by some who claimed that he should have hit or made a scene regarding the other man’s alleged actions against him. Some have claimed that a man like Crews, who is a large and African American, should not have allowed the action to take place.
The condemnation of a male sexual harassment victim is egregious and reprehensible. Just as female victims of sexual harassment may suffer employment consequences for retaliating against their harassers, Crews too could have suffered economic loss or mistreatment in his industry if he had created a spectacle with his powerful attacker.
Any victim of sexual harassment should be aware of their options under the law to bring their harassers to justice. Individuals should not have to endure the demeaning words or actions of others when they only want to do their work and advance in their careers. Men can suffer sexual harassment in their places of employment and should not be discouraged from speaking out about what they have experienced.