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Survey: More Skeptical Of Claims Against Sexual Harassment A Year After #MeToo

It’s been just over a year since revelations about movie mogul Harvey Weinstein sparked the #MeToo movement.

And, in a year in which we’ve seen countless powerful men taken down by women who accused them of sexual harassment or assault — #MeToo story after #MeToo story — you might expect people’s attitudes toward victims of sexual harassment have softened.

But a new survey from the Economist shows a small, but marked shift against victims.

A year ago, the Economist asked Americans questions such as:

"Should men who sexually harassed women at work 20 years ago keep their jobs?"

"Are false accusations of sexual assault a bigger problem than attacks that go unreported?"

Across the board, for men and women, the results show Americans are more skeptical of claims against sexual harassment and victims than they were a year ago.

According to the survey, "the share of American adults responding that men who sexually harassed women at work 20 years ago should keep their jobs has risen from 28 percent to 36 percent. And 18 percent of Americans now think that false accusations of sexual assault are a bigger problem than attacks that go unreported or unpunished, compared with 13 percent in November last year." 

For more on this, The Show talked to Sacha Nauta, public policy editor for the Economist, and she told us how this breaks down — particularly for women.

More About This

Lauren Gilger, host of KJZZ's The Show, is an award-winning journalist whose work has impacted communities large and small, exposing injustices and giving a voice to the voiceless and marginalized.