WITH THE TEAM, AND, HAVE THE
COMPLETE STORY AT 11:00 ON
CBS4.
FOR RIGHT NOW, THEY ARE WARMING
UP AND THE GAME IS ABOUT TO
START, BACK TO YOU GUYS.
THANK YOU.
EVERY DAY, IT SEEMS LIKE
MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ARE COMING
FORWARD WITH HARROWING TALES OF
SEXUAL ASSAULT AND HARASSMENT.
BIG NAMES IN HOLLYWOOD LIKE
BILL COSBY, HARVEY WEINSTEIN,
KEVIN SPACEY, DUSTIN HOFFMAN
AND BRETT RATNER ARE ALL
ACCUSED OF TAKING ADVANTAGE OF
THEIR A-LIST STATUS TO
VICTIMIZE OTHERS.
HERE TO TALK ABOUT IT IS
SHERRY BALDWIN, A NATIONALLY
RECOGNIZED EXPERT IN WORKING
WITH SEX ACCUSED -- ABUSE AND
TRAUMA VICTIMS.
FULL DISCLOSURE, WE WENT TO
HIGH SCHOOL TOGETHER A LONG
TIME AGO BUT WE ARE SO GLAD YOU
ARE HERE.
YOU ARE IN TOWN AS PART OF A
CONFERENCE ON TRAUMA AND PTSD
RECOVERY.
WE ARE GLAD TO TALK ABOUT THIS
STORY THAT EVERYBODY SEEMS TO
BE TALKING ABOUT.
WHY ARE SO MANY VICTIMS FEELING
COURAGEOUS ENOUGH TO SUDDENLY
COME FORWARD?
I THINK WHEN THE COSBY STORY
BROKE BACK IN 2015, THERE WERE
SO MANY PEOPLE WHO WERE SAYING,
IF THEY CAN SPEAK, I WANT TO
SPEAK.
SO I THINK REALLY, IT STARTED 2
YEARS AGO.
I THINK POWER IN NUMBERS.
ONE PERSON TELLS THEIR STORY,
AND THEN ANOTHER PERSON SAYS,
THAT'S MY STORY.
AND THEN IT IS SORT OF LIKE A
DOMINO EFFECT.
THAT SAYS A LOT ABOUT THE
PEOPLE WHO ARE COMING FORWARD
AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR THEM TO
TAKE THIS COURAGEOUS STEP.
BECAUSE, IT COULD BE HAVING
RAMIFICATIONS BEYOND JUST THEIR
OWN CASES.
ABSOLUTELY.
LET'S TALK ABOUT SOME OF
THESE HEADLINES MAKING CASES.
AND, I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE DONE
A LOT OF WORK ON THE COSBY
STORY.
YOU KNOW, IN HOLLYWOOD, NAMES
ARE GOING TO GET ATTENTION IN
THE MEDIA.
BUT, THESE KINDS OF ABUSES AND
HARASSMENT, THIS PROBABLY
HAPPENS IN EVERY KIND OF
WORKPLACE.
IT HAPPENS AND HAS BEEN
HAPPENING FOR DECADES.
IT HAPPENS IN THE WORK PLACE.
IT HAPPENS IN PEOPLE'S HOMES.
IT HAPPENS IN RELIGIOUS
SECTORS.
IT HAPPENS EVERY DAY, EVERY
MINUTE OF THE DAY.
I THINK THAT WE LIVE IN A
SOCIETY WHERE PEOPLE THINK IT'S
OKAY, TO USE THEIR SENSE OF
POWER, OR, THERE NEEDED TO BE
IN CONTROL, TO TAKE ADVANTAGE
OF SOMEBODY, OR PEOPLE WHO ARE
REALLY VULNERABLE.
I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT
ABOUT THE CAUSES BECAUSE THERE
HAVE BEEN SOME ARTICLES COMING
OUT TODAY ABOUT KEVIN SPACEY
FOR EXAMPLE, AND HOW HIS FATHER
IS ALLEGED TO HAVE BEEN ABUSIVE
PHYSICALLY AND SEXUALLY, TO HIM
AND HIS BROTHER.
DO YOU THINK THAT PLAYS INTO
ANYTHING?
IT CERTAINLY DOESN'T EXCUSE
ANYTHING BUT DO YOU THINK IT
MIGHT HELP US PLAN WHY A SECOND-
GENERATION MAY GO ON TO KIND OF
PERPETRATE THE CRIME?
I THINK IN MOST STORES WHERE
WE HEAR ABOUT PEOPLE COMMITTING
THESE KINDS OF ACTS, WHAT WE
FIND OUT IN THEIR HISTORIES IS
THAT THEY, TOO, HAVE GONE
THROUGH SOME TYPE OF ABUSE, OR
MISTREATED, AND, I THINK WHAT
IS SO IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW IS
THAT, IF WE CAN SEE THAT, WE
ARE GOING TO BE MOST POSSIBLY
HELPING PEOPLE THAT ARE
COMMITTING THESE ACTS, TO MAYBE
GET HELP FOR THEMSELVES AND
UNDERSTAND, WHAT MAKES THEM DO
THESE KINDS OF THINGS AND THINK
IT'S OKAY?
CAN IT BE PREVENTED?
IT'S GREAT THAT WE ARE TALKING
ABOUT THESE CASES THAT ARE IN
THE NEWS, AND, THAT IS SOMETHING
TO DO SOMETHING TO EMPOWER THE
VICTIMS TO COME FORWARD BUT
WHAT CAN WE DO TO PREVENT THESE
FROM HAPPENING IN THE FIRST
PLACE?
WHAT WE NEED TO DO IS TALK
TO OUR CHILDREN, LITTLE BOYS
AND LITTLE GIRLS, ABOUT HOW WE
TREAT EACH OTHER.
I THINK THAT IS HUGELY HELPFUL.
AND I THINK OUR GENERATION, ALL
OF THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN THROUGH
THESE EXPERIENCES, IF WE ARE
WILLING TO GO AND TALK ABOUT
IT, FIGURE OUT HOW IT AFFECTS
US, WE ARE MUCH MORE LIKE TO GO
AND REPEAT IT.
AND, IF WE GO BACK TO THIS
POWER DYNAMICS, A LOT OF THESE
PEOPLE THAT ARE MAKING THESE
HEADLINES WE ARE HEARING ABOUT
IT HAVE THAT HER PLAY DYNAMIC.
IT WAS YOUNG ACTRESSES FOR
EXAMPLE, COMING UP IN
HOLLYWOOD, AND BIG A LIST
DIRECTORS AND PRODUCERS.
AND, IT SEEMED TO JUST BE KIND
OF A PART OF THAT WORLD.
IT SEEMED TO BE AN ACCEPTED
PART OF CLIMBING THE RANKS.
I THINK IN ANY WORK
SITUATION WHERE THERE IS AN
ELEMENT OF POWER AND YOU HAVE
YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN WHO ARE
VULNERABLE, WHO ARE TRYING TO
MAKE IT IN THIS WORLD, THEY
WILL DO ANYTHING TO GET TO THE
TOP.
AND I THINK WHEN YOU SAY THAT,
THAT'S WHY SO MANY OF THESE
WOMEN AND MEN HAVE NOT SAID
ANYTHING UNTIL NOW.
BECAUSE, NOT ONLY IS THERE LIFE
AT RISK BECAUSE OF WHAT'S
HAPPENING TO THEM, BUT THEIR
CAREER.
IF I SPEAK, IF I SAY WHAT SO
AND SO DID TO ME, THEY ARE
TELLING ME YOU'RE GOING TO RUIN
MY LIFE.
SO OFTEN TIMES, THESE PEOPLE
THAT WE ARE HEARING ABOUT,
THEY'RE COMING FORWARD IN THEIR
40s, 50s AND 60s, BUT A LOT OF
THEM GO THROUGH THESE
EXPERIENCES WHEN THEIR NEWLY
OUT OF COLLEGE, IN THEIR EARLY
20s, JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT
THEIR WAY.
AND, THEY'RE THINKING, I'LL DO
WHATEVER I CAN TO BE SUCCESSFUL
EVEN IF IT MEANS KEEPING MY