History repeats itself, but it doesn’t have to.

A few weeks ago, Harvey Weinstein’s sexually violent behavior came to light, but situations like this have happened many times before in Hollywood.

Since Hollywood has been around, there have also been well-known directors, producers and executives using their power to exploit young actors and actresses. Oscar winning Hollywood executive and producer Weinstein has been accused of sexual assault a significant amount of times over the past few weeks. Some of these accusations have been met with skepticism, hindering the discussion of sexual violence.

There have been several cases of sexual assault in the public eye over the past few years. Examples include Taylor Swift’s 2017 legal battle against ex-radio DJ David Mueller, Bill Cosby’s ongoing sexual assault case, Kesha’s 2016 legal battle with her producer, actor Casey Affleck’s 2016 accusations and more recently, the Weinstein accusations. However, occurrences of sexual assault in the entertainment industry have a long history, especially in Hollywood.

Several Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) studios higher-ups such as Louis B. Mayer and Arthur Freed were notorious for this kind of behavior with young actresses Judy Garland, Joan Crawford, Shirley Temple and Marilyn Monroe. There are still countless other abusers of Hollywood stars who weren’t named in accusations due to actress’s fears of losing their careers. Monroe wrote honestly about her experiences in her memoirs My Life. “The drugstores and cheap cafes were full of managers ready to put you over if you enrolled under their banner. Their banner was usually a bed sheet. I met them all. Phoniness and failure were all over them. Some were vicious and crooked. But they were as near to the movies as you could get. So you sat with them, listening to their lies and schemes. And you saw Hollywood with their eyes,” said Monroe.

It’s no coincidence that some of these stars struggled with mental illness throughout their lives. Garland struggled with depression, anxiety and addiction. In 1947, she suffered a nervous breakdown and was put in a psychiatric hospital. In 1969, at the age of 47, Garland unintentionally overdosed and passed away. Monroe also suffered from these same difficulties and unexpectedly committed suicide from overdose in 1962 at 36 years old. While there may be other things that factored into the struggles of these actresses, victims of sexual abuse often suffer from guilt, self-destructive behavior, severe anxiety, frequent sadness and other symptoms of mental illness as a result.

Women are not the only victims of this behavior though. In a 2013 interview on talkshow The View actor Corey Feldman claimed that both he and fellow actor Corey Haim were molested as children by powerful men in Hollywood. “There are people that were the people who did this to both me and Corey that are still working. They’re still out there, and they’re some of the richest, most powerful people in this business,” said Feldman. Recently, actor Terry Crews came forward on Twitter and said that a high-level executive walked over and sexually groped him in front of his wife at a Hollywood event. He didn’t report this to avoid being ostracized and not working again. “I let it go. And I understand why many women who this happens to let it go,” said Crews on Twitter.

This leads up to the most recent case of sexual abuse in Hollywood. Weinstein has previously been famous for his production work on several popular award-winning movies and musicals such as Pulp Fiction, Shakespeare in Love, The King’s Speech and The Producers. Beyond that, he also co-founded Miramax Films and The Weinstein Company with his brother Bob. Now, Weinstein is making news because of the numerous accusations of sexual assault and harassment against him.

More than 40 women in the film industry so far, including employees and former employees of Weinstein’s companies, have come forward with accusations. Well-known actresses Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow, Rosanna Arquette, Ashley Judd, Cara Delevingne, Heather Graham, Rose McGowan and Lena Headey are among them. A major factor in these accusations getting attention were articles published by The New York Times and The New Yorker a few weeks ago, which contained information from interviews detailing Weinstein’s repetitive behaviour with unconsenting women.

Since then, more women have come forward with similar stories. Some of these accounts take place as early as 1999, but no one has publicly come forward until this year. This situation is similar to many sexual assault cases and this tends to cause the public to doubt alleged victims. What many don’t understand is that victims and witnesses are too often forced into silence by fear and guilt. Of reasons given for not reporting sexual assault, 20 percent said they feared retaliation from their abusers (Source: rainn.org/statistics/criminal-justice-system). “I know he (Weinstein) has crushed a lot of people before. That’s why this story-in my case, it’s twenty years old, some of them are older- has never come out,” said Italian actress and director Asia Argento.

In Weinstein’s situation and many others like it, he is a millionaire Hollywood executive with an experienced legal team, taking advantage of vulnerable people. In 2015, a then employee of Weinstein’s, Lauren O’Connor wrote a memo full of the experiences of her and other female co workers being exploited by their boss to help him take advantage of actresses. “I am a 28-year-old woman trying to make a living and career. Harvey Weinstein is a 64-year-old world famous man, and this is his company. The balance of power is me: 0, Harvey Weinstein: 10,” said O’Connor in this memo.

As consequence of these allegations, Weinstein has been fired from his production company, expelled from the Producers Guild, suspended from membership of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, investigated by police and left by his wife. While it’s a good thing that Weinstein is being held responsible for his actions, it’s important to recognize that many abusers haven’t been, not just in the entertainment industry but in every walk of life. Perpetrators of rape are less likely to go to jail than any other kind of criminal (Source: rainn.org/statitsics/criminal-justice-system), and victims who come forward make all the difference in awareness of sexual violence and preventing it in the future.

So, perhaps rather than meeting accusations with immediate doubt, it would be more helpful to take them seriously so that history doesn’t repeat itself. If perpetrators believe that their actions won’t have consequences, this will keep happening. Sexual violence can affect someone for the rest of their lives. It’s essential to discuss this topic and give visibility to the issue, for the sake of victims.

More information:
National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673
List of celebrities who’ve spoken against Weinstein:
http://people.com/celebrity/harvey-weinstein-scandal-gallery/marion-cotillard
New York Times article: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/05/us/harvey-weinstein-harassment-allegations.html
New Yorker article:
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/from-aggressive-overtures-to-sexual-assault-harvey-weinsteins-accusers-tell-their-stories
Terry Crews Tweets about harassment:
https://twitter.com/terrycrews/status/917838446697226240