TIME magazine has unveiled its Person of the Year for 2017. Contrary to what certain presidents of the United States predicted, the title was bestowed upon a group of people that have been dubbed "the silence breakers" — a nod to the deluge of brave women and men who have come forward to share their stories as victims of sexual harassment, assault and abuse.
Among those awarded the accolade are actress Ashley Judd, who went on the record with the New York Times to expose Harvey Weinstein's history of misconduct in Hollywood; Tarana Burke and Alyssa Milano, who created the #MeToo hashtag and catapulted it to viral status, respectively; Selma Blair who called out director James Toback for sexual harassment; Taylor Swift, who successfully fought a symbolic $1 lawsuit against a Denver radio DJ that groped her during a meet-and-greet; actress and activist Rose McGowan, who publicly named Weinstein as her rapist for the first time; Terry Crews, who revealed that he was recently sexually assaulted by a Hollywood executive; and former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, who accused Bill O'Reilly and former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes of sexual harassment.
Perhaps even more powerful (though, sadly, not surprising), is the extensive number of less recognizable names on the list that include women from a range of professions. Artists, politicians, engineers, hotel workers, hospital workers, strawberry pickers, dishwashers, bloggers, housekeepers, entrepreneurs, journalists and professors all shared their experiences of sexual harassment and assault — demonstrating both the pervasive nature of the problem, and the impressive fight to finally make their voices heard.
Read TIME's complete profile on the silence breakers here.
Order Taylor Swift's new album, Reputation, on CD and double picture disc vinyl via Umusic.
Among those awarded the accolade are actress Ashley Judd, who went on the record with the New York Times to expose Harvey Weinstein's history of misconduct in Hollywood; Tarana Burke and Alyssa Milano, who created the #MeToo hashtag and catapulted it to viral status, respectively; Selma Blair who called out director James Toback for sexual harassment; Taylor Swift, who successfully fought a symbolic $1 lawsuit against a Denver radio DJ that groped her during a meet-and-greet; actress and activist Rose McGowan, who publicly named Weinstein as her rapist for the first time; Terry Crews, who revealed that he was recently sexually assaulted by a Hollywood executive; and former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, who accused Bill O'Reilly and former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes of sexual harassment.
Perhaps even more powerful (though, sadly, not surprising), is the extensive number of less recognizable names on the list that include women from a range of professions. Artists, politicians, engineers, hotel workers, hospital workers, strawberry pickers, dishwashers, bloggers, housekeepers, entrepreneurs, journalists and professors all shared their experiences of sexual harassment and assault — demonstrating both the pervasive nature of the problem, and the impressive fight to finally make their voices heard.
Read TIME's complete profile on the silence breakers here.
Order Taylor Swift's new album, Reputation, on CD and double picture disc vinyl via Umusic.
