[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
Unfortunately, Blake Lively’s legal fight against Justin Baldoni probably hits home for a lot of actresses who’ve dealt with sexist directors. Now Abigail Breslin has a lot to say about it…
Over the weekend, the Little Miss Sunshine star took to Tumblr and subsequently Instagram to share her support for Blake amid all the It Ends with Us sexual harassment legal drama. And in doing so, Abigail reflected on her own recent attempt to bring forward “concerns about a male colleague” — which didn’t go so well for her.
In a lengthy post titled, “women=scapegoats,” the Zombieland alum gave readers a sexual assault/harassment trigger warning before diving into her thoughts:
“When did the word woman become synonymous with scapegoat? As I see the news each day, I realize this is the world we seem to live in. In light of recent events regarding the attempt to destroy the career and livelihood of a fellow actress and woman, I have felt compelled to write this, as I have unfortunately been subject to the same toxic masculinity throughout my life. In my recent career, I’ve brought forward concerns about a male colleague and was deemed ‘hysterical.’ I was told my fears were figments of my imagination. Now, as I’m seeing this pattern pop up more, I realize this is the norm.”
Women still being called “hysterical” in the 2020s. Ugh.
So what’s she talking about? Last year, Abigail accused her Classified co-star Aaron Eckhart of behaving in an “aggressive, demeaning and unprofessional” manner. During production on the film, Abigail refused to be alone with Aaron because of his alleged behavior. The investigation, however, found “no evidence in support to Breslin’s wild, hysterical, and imaginary allegations against Eckhart.” The production companies subsequently launched an $80,000 lawsuit against her for damages for refusing to work alone with him. So she, like Blake around the time of IEWU’s release, found herself as a public enemy. She continued:
“I, like a lot of women, had hope in change — especially in the latter part of 2017 when many brave women came forward during the #MeToo movement. There seemed to be an uprising, a new wave of recognition for those who had been abused, degraded, slandered, silenced and it was loud. But it was the kind of noise I can only liken to a firework. It can wake you up out of a sound sleep, it burns so bright and shocks the s**t out of you but then, it burns out — just like that. And when the smoke in the sky clears and the ashes and debris are swept away from the sidewalk, behind closed doors — to them — we are still just noisy women. So we all go about our business until the next wave of injustice comes.”
Damn. That’s a depressing thought. But Abigail wasn’t done:
“With the #MeToo movement, it felt different. People were annoyed (by people, I mean men and anyone who enables abusers). Annoyed that they might have to change their own dehumanizing behavior. I remember the shift from ‘yasss!!! Go women!!!! We are woke af!!!! We got your back!!!!’ To ‘god, didn’t these bitches have their moment a few years ago? Get over it’. As if centuries of women being underpaid, undervalued, under-appreciated, raped, harassed, terrified and used for the benefits of d**k-wielding heroes would be erased because you commented on your second cousins #MeToo instagram saying ‘stay strong’.”
Damn. Preach it! She continued:
“It was a pat on the head, a consolation prize accompanied by an eye roll as if we were just all constantly complaining that the gas station didn’t sell our preferred brands of tampons. When a suit was filed against me by a former employer, (the suit was withdrawn), after making a confidential complaint against a coworker for unprofessional behavior, I had the silly and naive impression they would believe me. I am not known as a liar in my field of work, no matter how vocal I may be. Hence, why I’ve been working for 25 years. Instead of being believed and protected, a suit was filed against me for having the audacity to speak up. I was publicly shamed and defamed in the process. A reputation I had cultivated for over 2 decades had now been tainted as I became the crazy, paranoid and to quote directly, ‘hysterical and wild’ woman, who apparently just had it in for men. My previous abuse was also brought up as ‘unfounded claims’, and I was made to seem like someone who just goes after men, rather than being seen as someone who has been dealing as a professional in this world, since I was a child, standing up for herself. This was after I had taken all of the recommended, reasonable and appropriate measures of reporting confidentially to my union.”
That’s so completely horrible. Poor Abigail… As we mentioned, Blake had a taste of similar treatment for a few months after IEWU premiered as Justin’s alleged smear campaign seemingly worked, but she’s currently in the process of taking back control of her truth. And so many people — like Abigail — are here to support her.
Related: Whitney Cummings Defends Blake Lively & ROASTS Justin Baldoni Amid Legal Drama! WATCH!
The Definitely, Maybe star went on:
“The experience left me with a lot of questions, of the professionals in my industry, of the public, and of men. To the public… I often wonder why are we always so excited to see the takedown of a woman? Why are we always so quick to defend a man after he is accused of bad behavior, but if a woman speaks out… she’s clearly a liar? I’d like to think it’s because we are supremely afraid to believe the truth that these things actually happen. I’d like to believe it’s some form of indoctrinated denial. However, time and time again, I find most people believe the approval of a man is far more significant than the burden of supporting a woman. For men, it is always innocent until proven guilty. For women it is the opposite. ‘Prove your fear.’ ‘Prove your discomfort.’ ‘Prove your pain.’”
That’s so powerful… And sadly, largely true in our society.
She continued:
“This MUST change. And to men, I first wonder… if you complained about a coworker and you were called a liar… how would you feel? You probably can’t answer this because most likely, statistically, it’s never happened to you. Men are usually believed because so many ‘bosses’ are men. I will say this to those who have such a difficult time believing that women are truthful: do you know what happens to us if we report anything? Do you know that most of the time when a woman reports a concern about a man, the burden of proof lies solely on us? Do you know how it feels to be treated as a second rate citizen solely because we don’t have an appendage we can stick into anything we feel we own the right to? And yet… you need us. You can’t charge your phone without an outlet right? And is that all we are? Outlets? Something you can take your anger and vitriol and push that into us and onto us?”
The 28-year-old finished off:
“It leads us to the impossible double-edged sword we face everyday. If we do, we are over dramatic, bitchy, bossy, divas. Do you have a sister? Do you have a daughter? Do you have a mother? I’m sure you do. And so here we find ourselves again, in a vicious cycle of crucifying another woman for speaking out against a man. Watching as the world splits in two over who is telling the truth, no matter how much evidence is presented. Because how could a woman do anything but lie or exaggerate? So I ask you this: How can a man do anything but lie when he is consistently told his deceptions are gospel? Are we forever to hold the burden of being ‘perfect’ to be victims and to be believed?”
God, that’s too true. Even at the highest levels, even when your case has been weighed in a court of law… Fans of horrible men decide they won’t believe women who don’t fit their mental picture of a rape victim.
Abigail finished with the epic line:
“To change the narrative, we do not need more women to scream. We just need a lot more men to shut up and listen.”
Wow… Her words are piercingly sobering… The question is, will they be able to pierce the men who are in power? To help our society move toward a future where women enjoy the same luxury as men of being believed?
As we know, Justin is promising a strong fight against Blake, despite SO much damning evidence. We will just have to wait and see.
Reactions to Abigail’s essay? Share your thoughts in the comments down below.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources