Name: Hanako Gibersztajn

Social Justice Group: Street and Workplace Harassment

Date of Fieldwork: February 21, 2022

Name of Organization and person (people) with whom you met and their title(s):Gloria Allred, Sexual Assault Lawyer and Feminist

Type of Fieldwork: Interview

What I did and what I learned about my topic, activism, social justice work or civil and human rights work from this fieldwork?[:: :

On Monday, February 21, my group mates and had the honor of meeting with Feminist and Attorney Gloria Allred, who has a long history of combatting the ever-lasting issue of sexual assault. She is known for her work involving the Bill Cosby case and defending some of the many women who spoke up against him. She has received much praise and criticism for her accomplishments over the years, but despite the continuous misogynistic and close-minded people and ideals that have tried to hold her back since the beginning of her career, she continues to march on the frontlines of advocating for equal rights, not just for women, but for everyone.

We learned about the perspective of a lawyer who specializes in this area and about the patterns that they notice when dealing with the accused. A lot of the time, a response to sexual assault victims speaking up against their assaulter is “she was asking for it.” This is because of a sense of entitlement to the woman’s body. This toxically masculine mindset is taught to boys at a young age and is the reason why misogyny and the patriarchy are still very much prevalent today. Ms. Allred’s work is dedicated to both helping women who have been victims of this mindset and to correcting and eradicating it all together. She is a truly inspirational individual and we are all glad that we got the chance to speak with her.