As Hollywood has been rocked by the allegations of sexual assault against producer Harvey Weinstein, many actors have also come under fire. One is Matt Damon, who was accused by a female journalist of killing a story she was working on about Weinstein.
The reporter, Sharon Waxman, wrote that her story was sanitized due to connections between Weinstein and the New York Times, where she was attempting to publish her piece.
Her story was to be about Fabrizio Lombardo, who was rumored to be a "procurer of women" for Weinstein.
"After intense pressure from Weinstein, which included having Matt Damon and Russell Crowe call me directly to vouch for Lombardo and unknown discussions well above my head at the Times, the story was gutted," she wrote.
Damon responded to the accusation in Deadline, saying he made the call, but didn't know the story was about sexual assault. Waxman later backed him up on his claim.
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Damon said that he would never condone Weinstein's behavior, especially after having four daughters.
"Look, even before I was famous, I didn’t abide this kind of behavior. But now, as the father of four daughters, this is the kind of sexual predation that keeps me up at night. This is the great fear for all of us. You have a daughter, you know…" he said.
Men like Damon claiming they don't tolerate sexual assault because they have a daughter has become a common trope among males speaking out against sexual assault. But now people online are saying they need to cut it out.
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They argue this is mainly because everyone should take sexual assault seriously, no matter if you're a father or not.
"PSA: If your reason for wanting to end rape culture is that you're 'the father of a daughter,' you need to reorient your moral compass," wrote one woman.
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Others pointed out EVERYONE is responsible for ending rape culture.
"As the father of a daughter, I too am sick and damn tired of dads invoking daughters to condemn sexual predators, Really, it took dadhood?" one dad said.
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"As the daughter of a father and mother to 2 dogs, I can honestly say I had no idea women are people too."
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