Rose McGowan Excoriates Hollywood: “It’s Time to Clean House”

“I came to be a voice for all of us who’ve been told we were nothing.”

Junfu Han/Detroit Free Press

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Rose McGowan gave her first public remarks since accusing film producer Harvey Weinstein of rape earlier this month, saying it’s time for Hollywood to “clean house.” McGowan is among the various women who have stepped forward with allegations of sexual abuse and assault against Weinstein in recent weeks.

“I came to be a voice for all of us who’ve been told we were nothing, for all of us who’ve been looked down on, for all of us who’ve been grabbed by the motherf—ing pussy,” she said in the rousing speech at the Women’s Convention in Detroit. “No more. Name it. Shame it. Call it out. Join me, join all of us as we amplify each other’s voices and we do what is right for us and for our sisters and for this planet.”

During her remarks, McGowan called for more diversity in the entertainment industry and also described the danger of having so many men—especially men like Weinstein—making the decisions that impact women’s careers, livelihoods, and identities.

Hollywood may seem like it’s an isolated thing, but it’s not. It’s the messaging system for your mind. It is the mirror that you are given to look into. This is what you are as a woman. This is what you are as a man. This is what you are as a boy, girl, gay, straight, transgender.

But it’s all told through 96 percent males in the Director’s Guild of America. That statistic has not changed since 1946, so we are given one view. And I know the men behind that view and they should not be in your mind and they should not be in mine.

You can watch McGowan’s speech below:

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We just keep seeing it happen: Newsrooms owned by billionaires and corporations are spinning their own narratives, overwriting the truth, following only stories that keep them in the pocket of those with even more power.

Not here. We’re not owned by anyone. We’re not part of any cult that demands our allegiance to a bottom line. We’ve spoken up and spoken out while other newsrooms changed their stories—or cut them altogether—to keep the C suite happy.

Our mission is to find the truth and amplify it. That’s why we’re independent, nonprofit, and, crucially, funded by readers. The investigations on our website will always be free to read, watch, and listen to, but our newsroom is powered by readers who pitch in what they can so we can keep asking the hard questions.

Can you chip in today?

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