Former Television host Oprah Winfrey has finally opened up about the gigantic sexual assault claims that have been made against studio mogul Harvey Weinstein.
Winfrey, who starred in Weinstein Company's 'Lee Daniels The Butler', called it a "watershed moment" and said that it is triggering a lot of unreleased pain.
In an interview to a TV channel, she said, "I'm always trying to look for the rainbow in the cloud, whatever is the silver lining. And this is what I do know for sure: Something this major happens, when you have the fallout, 50 women coming forward, that it's a watershed moment."
She believes that the scandal has triggered the "suffering" women have endured and kept hidden for an extensive amount of time.
"What I do believe is actually happening is that, first of all, it's triggering a lot of unreleased pain, repressed anger, guilt and suffering that a lot of women have had," Winfrey explained.
The 63-year-old star elaborated on how much this scandal has affected women "who hadn't slept over a period of two days."
She added, "Everybody has a story and so I think this is a watershed moment. If we make this just about Harvey Weinstein, then we will have lost this moment. I think this is a moment, where no matter what business you work in, the women who not only had the disease to please, that's a part of it, but who felt that in order to keep my job, to keep my position, in order to keep moving forward. I've got to smile. I've got to look the other way. I've got to pretend he didn't say that. He didn't touch me. Those days are about to be over."
Winfrey, who previously has publicly discussed the story of her sexual harassment, believes the more women speak out, the less fear they'll have over breaking their silence.
She noted, "A lot of women have been silenced and I know being a victim of child sexual abuse that when you feel like you cannot be heard and then other people start speaking out, it makes you feel like 'Oh, now I can speak out, too."
Winfrey originally addressed the Weinstein scandal in a statement posted on her Facebook page.
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