Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Friday, February 3
    Trending
    • February 3, 2023: Some Questions on this Week’s News
    • This Day in History on February 3rd
    • History Short: The Most Important Naval Battle You Never Heard Of
    • This Day in History on February 2nd
    • History Short: What Else is February 2nd Known For?
    • Triumphs and Tragedies of the Space Shuttle Program: A Compilation
    • This Day in History on February 1st
    • History Short: Who is America’s Greatest Male Actor?
    History and Headlines
    • Arts & Entertainment
      • Cinema & TV
      • Games
      • Literature
      • Music
      • Sports
      • Video Games
    • Bizarre Bulletin
      • Misconceptions
      • The Bizarre
      • The Paranormal
      • The Unexplained
    • Lifestyle
      • Animals/Pets
      • Fashion
      • Food
      • Health/Medicine
      • Home Improvement
      • Horoscopes
      • Travel
    • Science & Tech
      • Inventions
      • Nature
      • Vehicles
    • Society
      • Business and Economics
      • Crime
      • Military
      • Politics
      • Religion
      • Society
    • About
      • Welcome to Our Site!
      • This Day in History
      • Table of Contents: A History of the World
      • Online History Textbooks
      • A Guide to Some of Our Favorite Scholars and Educators
      • Advance Screenings and Movie Reviews Archive
      • Schedule of Video Adaptations of Our Articles
    • Friends
      • Armchair History TV
      • Fact Fiend
      • RealClearHistory
      • Simply Charly
      • TopTenz
      • ​Unique Interpretations
    History and Headlines
    You are at:Home»Society»Crime»November 19, 1998: Is Sexual Harassment an Epidemic?
    Crime

    November 19, 1998: Is Sexual Harassment an Epidemic?

    Major DanBy Major DanNovember 19, 2017Updated:June 14, 2020No Comments5 Mins Read
    Email Facebook LinkedIn Pinterest Reddit Telegram Tumblr Twitter VKontakte WhatsApp

    A Brief History

    On November 19, 1998, the United States House of Representatives began hearings on the Monica Lewinsky-President Bill Clinton sex scandal that would result in Clinton being impeached for lying about the affair.  With Clinton out of office since January of 2001, it would seem the incident would be long forgotten, except for the 2016 Presidential campaign in which the Bill Clinton’s alleged history of sexual harassment/predation was brought up in retaliation for the revelations about Donald Trump’s alleged record of sexual harassment.  Combined with recent events in the past couple years, the incidents that have been alleged in 2017 (many from the past) have created a veritable circus of allegations, denials, and sometimes confessions and apologies.

    Digging Deeper

    Given the current state of one celebrity after another being accused of some sort of sexual harassment (Judge Roy Moore, candidate for the US Senate; Harvey Weinstein, movie mogul; Al Franken, US Senator; Louis CK, comedian, Bill Cosby; comedian; Mariah Carey, singer; Kevin Spacey, actor; Ben Afleck, actor; George HW Bush, former president; Bill O’Reilly, pundit to name a few of the recently accused) you might think that we are experience some sort of epidemic of sexual harassment.  Or is it only because we are more aware of the problem?

    We strongly suspect that the reality is that there have always been high levels of sexual harassment, pressure, even force, going on in the workplace, the school, and anywhere human people interact.  Back when Hollywood was famous for the “casting couch” and young actresses were said to have to yield to the sexual advances of directors and producers to land a role, the subject was joked about instead of generating outrage.  Marilyn Monroe is often quoted as saying, “I’ll never have to suck a Jewish cxxk again” after she made it big in movies.  Back when women were limited to secretarial and clerical type jobs, male bosses would treat them like servants, maids, or slaves, and sexual comments, touching, innuendo, and ultimatums were the order of the day.  When powerful men (bosses, teachers, politicians) made unwanted advances on a woman or girl, the female kept quiet about it and the press ignored it.  It is highly unlikely the rash of school teachers having sex with students is a recent phenomenon.  More likely than not it is just more media attention and willingness of courts and parents to prosecute (and SUE!).

    Over the years, lawsuits over a wide variety of issues have become more and more prevalent, at an ever-increasing rate, with media coverage of large settlements making the opportunity to sue a tempting proposition for anyone with a complaint.  As successful prosecutions, successful lawsuits, and public opinion continues to lean in favor of victims, such sexual harassment revelations will increasingly become public in a snowball effect.

    Of course, it is not just women and girls that get sexually harassed!  Kevin Spacey is accused of making homosexual advances on boys, and Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky was convicted of such behavior.  In recent years a rash of female elementary through high school teachers have been convicted very publicly of having sex with male students, providing material for late night comedians, but likely not funny to the parents of the boy victims.  The predation of pedophile priests on young boys is an embarrassing scandal within the Catholic Church, and other men of the cloth have quite publicly been exposed as sexual harassing sinners (both heterosexual and homosexual harassment).

    Estimates indicate a third of all American working women have been the victim of sexual harassment, and of those, about 75% have suffered some sort of retaliation for complaining about such behavior!  Other studies estimate only 6 to 13% of victims ever file a complaint or come forward.

    As more and more people report incidents of sexual harassment from the past or present, more and more victims will be willing to come forward.  It will continue to seem like a tsunami of incidents, but in reality it is just more light being shined on the problem that has certainly always existed.  Hopefully, measure taken to reduce the incidence of sexual harassment such as education and efficient reporting procedures that do not punish the victim will finally start a trend toward the reduction of unwanted or inappropriate sexual coercion and advances.

    Question for students (and subscribers): What do you think we can do to reduce the amount of sexual harassment that still takes place?  What controls on false accusations would be appropriate that would not infringe on the rights of victims?  (Perhaps the subject of a future article/discussion!)  Do you think there is more or less sexual harassment than there used to be?  Are famous people being unfairly smeared by allegations, or is it about time these predators got their just desserts?  Feel free to offer your opinions or any insight into this hot topic in the comments section below this article.

    If you liked this article and would like to receive notification of new articles, please feel welcome to subscribe to History and Headlines by liking us on Facebook and becoming one of our patrons!

    Your readership is much appreciated!

    Historical Evidence

    For more information, please see…

    Starr, Kenneth W. and The Washington Post.  The Starr Report: The Findings of Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr on President Clinton and the Lewinsky Affair.  PublicAffairs, 1998.

    Share. Email Facebook LinkedIn Pinterest Reddit Telegram Twitter Tumblr
    Previous ArticleNovember 18, 2017: What is Apple Cider? (Is Apple Cider Different from Apple Juice?)
    Next Article 10 More Idiotic Ways to Die
    Major Dan

    Major Dan is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.

    Related Posts

    History Short: The Most Important Naval Battle You Never Heard Of

    February 3, 2023

    History Short: What Poison Gasses were Used in World War I?

    January 31, 2023

    History Short: What is the Axis of Evil?

    January 29, 2023
    Follow Us!
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Patreon
    Sign Up For Our Newsletter!
    Most Recent

    February 3, 2023: Some Questions on this Week’s News

    February 3, 2023

    This Day in History on February 3rd

    February 3, 2023

    History Short: The Most Important Naval Battle You Never Heard Of

    February 3, 2023

    This Day in History on February 2nd

    February 2, 2023

    History Short: What Else is February 2nd Known For?

    February 2, 2023
    This Day in History Video

    Advertisements




    Amazon Affiliate Disclosure Statement

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases via links in the “Historical Evidence” sections of articles.

    About HistoryAndHeadlines.com

    Thanks for visiting History and Headlines!  This site exists primarily for educational purposes and is intended as a resource for Dr. Zar’s students.  Articles are mostly written by either Dr. Zar or his dad (Major Dan).  To any guest readers, please keep that in mind when commenting on articles.   Thank you!

    We try to present our students with historical topics that are both diverse and a bit out of the ordinary.  Our motto is “We try until we succeed!”

    Contact us at admin@historyandheadlines.com

    Guidelines and Policies for Images used on This Site, as well as for Guest and Sponsored Articles, and Other Terms of Use

    Privacy Statement

    © 2022 History and Headlines

    All-Time Most Commented

    July 28, 1866: 18 Year Old Girl Wins Commission to Sculpt Statue of Lincoln (A Truly Great American Woman)

    July 28, 2014

    December 24, 1865: Birth of the Ku Klux Klan

    December 24, 2015

    December 25, 1868: President Johnson Pardons all Confederate Veterans

    December 25, 2015

    February 5, 1909: First Plastic Invented was called Bakelite!

    February 5, 2014

    November 23, 1876: “Boss” Tweed Turned Over to Authorities

    November 23, 2013
    Recommended Book
    © 2023 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

    You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.

    History and Headlines
    Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

    Strictly Necessary Cookies

    Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

    If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.