The #MeToo social media campaign has exploded across social media, empowering women to come together in solidarity and to share their stories of sexual abuse and harassment without shame.
Actress Alyssa Milano posted a tweet on Oct. 15 and ignited the social media movement. Milano's "Charmed" co-star Rose McGowan is one of more than 40 women who have accused movie executive Harvey Weinstein of sexual harrasment, abuse or rape.
Weinstein has denied any allegations of non-consensual sex.
"My hope is people will get the idea of the magnitude, of just how many people have been affected by this in the world, in our lifetimes, in this country," Milano told The Associated Press on Monday. "The most important thing that it did was to shift the conversation away from the predator and to the victim."
According to Facebook, "4.7 million people around the world have engaged in the 'Me Too' conversation on Facebook in solidarity with victims of sexual assault and sexual harassment."
In less than 24 hours, there were more than 500,000 tweets and more than 12 million Facebook posts, comments and reactions on content that included #MeToo. Also, more than 45 percent of people in the United States are friends with someone who has already made a "Me Too" post, according to Facebook.
Nearly half a million people on Twitter used the hashtag in the first 24 hours, the AP reported.
U.S. & World
Sen. Elizabeth Warren joined the chorus of posts, writing as many others did on Facebook, "If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote 'Me too' as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem.
While the movement has helped women come out of the shadows, men are also sharing their stories of sexual abuse.
Former NHL star Theo Fleury shared his experience, writing, "I am a #metoo and I’m a male I would like to know how many guys out there are #metoos."
Some other men wrote #IHave to signal their own misdeeds toward women.
Milano said she got the idea for her #MeToo post from a friend.
"While I am sickened and angered over the disturbing accusations of Weinstein's sexual predation and abuse of power, I'm happy - ecstatic even - that it has opened up a dialogue around the continued sexual harassment, objectification and degradation of women," she wrote.
Milano later told the AP she decided not to share her personal "Me Too" story to keep the focus on others.
"Really what's happening here is giving women the opportunity to come forward without having to go into detail about their stories if they don't want to," she said.
Activist Alicia Garza took to Twitter Monday and gave credit to Tarana Burke as the founder of the #MeToo hashtag 10 years ago.
