The actress Rose McGowan, one of the 13 women who initially spoke out about Harvey Weinstein’s sexual misconduct earlier this week, has been among the most vocal. Too vocal, perhaps, for Twitter’s liking; the company suspended her account after a series of posts about Weinstein.
“TWITTER HAS SUSPENDED ME. THERE ARE POWERFUL FORCES AT WORK. BE MY VOICE,” Ms. McGowan wrote on her Instagram page after midnight on Thursday.
Twitter faced a storm of outrage by mid-morning that day, including harsh words from fellow celebrities. The actress Jamie Lee Curtis posted “And now THIS? You allow Twitter freedom to our president but you silence a woman speaking out about sexual harassment?”
The company was quick to make an official statement, announcing that Ms. McGowan’s account had been temporarily locked because one of her posts had included a private phone number, which violates Twitter’s terms of service. They lifted what was supposed to be a 12-hour freeze on her account early. Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s Chief Executive, posted that “we need to be a lot more transparent in our actions to build trust.”
Although Twitter may have briefly silenced Ms. McGowan, the torrent of accusations against Mr. Weinstein shows no signs of slowing. On Thursday, Montreal actress Erika Rosenbaum joined what is now more than 30 other accusations of sexual harassment and assault on Weinstein’s part.
The 37-year-old actress, best known for her roles in Smurfs, Brooklyn, and The Trotsky, told the press of three separate instances when the Hollywood producer aggressively propositioned her, all occurring nearly fifteen years ago. Like many of the other stories that have come to light this week, Ms. Rosenbaum says that she initially met with Weinstein under the pretense of discussing her acting career. That first meeting was moved to a hotel room at the last minute, where Weinstein pressured her into massaging him. “I was too young to know how to handle it. I just knew I couldn’t make an enemy of this guy,” she said.
It was the second meeting, two years later, when Mr. Weinstein’s actions went much further. He diverted their scheduled meeting to a hotel room once again and answered the door wearing no pants. Ms. Rosenbaum says that he again pressured her to stay on the grounds of furthering her career, and ultimately grabbed her around the neck and forced her to watch him masturbate in a bathroom mirror.
Like many of the other women who have spoken out over the past few days, Ms. Rosenbaum said that she refused to remain silent, and therefore protect the mogul, any longer.
“I felt like if I did not use my negative experience to add one more name to the list of women he has affected in this way, he would still be somehow getting something from me. I would still be keeping his secret,” she said.
“And I owe him nothing.”
