The #MeToo movement was founded in 2006 by social activist Tarana Burke when she tried to promote empowerment among women of color who had experienced sexual abuse. The movement was spread as a hashtag in 2017 by actress Alyssa Milano. More than 200,000 women on the internet used the hashtag by the end of the day.

Comedian Norm MacDonald said, “I’m happy the #MeToo movement has slowed down a little bit. It used to be, ‘100 women can’t be lying,’ and then it became, ‘one woman can’t lie,’ and that became, ‘I believe all women,’ and then you’re like, ‘what?’”

Until the Kavanaugh hearing, the movement did seem to be slowing down. One of the last big stories on the #MeToo movement centered around comedian Aziz Ansari after he brought a woman home and aggressively tried to get her to have sex with him. Men all over the internet said they treated women just like Ansari did.

Every time there’s a new man who gets accused, there are thousands of men and women who blame the victim instead of the person who committed the crime. Society has a bad tendency to blame the victim, which makes less victims want to come forward. It has taken a lot of these women more than 20 years to come forward, largely because they didn’t feel safe enough to come out before now.

Men in positions of power were keeping these women silent for all these years. I don’t think these women knew how common it was to be sexually harassed in a workplace environment by a man who had more power than them. The #MeToo movement lets women know they aren’t alone when they experience any type of sexual abuse. Whether that be catcalling on the street, feeling like they can’t say no to a boss or being drugged and raped after a night out.

The movement has made progress, but there are still women being asked what they were wearing or what they were drinking. No matter what the circumstances, she should still be treated as a victim. Many women don’t speak out because they have to try and prove what happened, when they should be believed. The percentage of women who make false accusations is so low, and an estimated 63 percent of sexual assaults go unreported. We should believe all women, because right now we barely believe any of them.  

MacDonald’s opinion that people deserve second chances is a fair point, but some of these men don’t deserve that. Men who use their power to pressure women into doing what they want do not deserve a second chance. Men who prey on young girls and boys do not deserve a second chance. Men who drunkenly try to rape a girl, pretend they don’t remember and later become Supreme Court nominees do not deserve a second chance.

The #MeToo movement is important for women who feel alone. These women don’t deserve to watch the men who hurt them rise to power. I don’t wish the #MeToo movement would slow down — I wish it would speed up so all these men can be exposed.  

Ashlon Lusk is a 19-year-old mass communication sophomore from Houston, Texas.