ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how innovators think about harassment and sexual assault. Although we did not ask about personal experiences, women and nonbinary participants shared them freely in focus groups with complete strangers in ways characteristic of the #MeToo era. With new definitions replacing old ones, some participants redefined past experiences as assault or harassment. The power of women’s “voices” suggests that social and cultural change is created not only in the media and among celebrities but also in people’s everyday lives. This chapter also features the focus group men who were innovators or held some key innovative ideas. Thus, innovators of all genders push forward widespread cultural transformations that may develop a bridge across the gender divide. These discourses reveal that social movement ideology diffusion contributes to the gender revolution. As resisters clamor to maintain the status quo, innovators challenge inequalities and male privilege in profound ways.
