In the wake of Hollywood’s Harvey Weinstein scandal, Amazon Studio’s Chief Roy Price was suspended yesterday following allegations of sexual harassment leveled against him by a producer for Amazon Studios.
Corporate leaders create corporate culture. If the people at the top are engaging in sexual harassment, or other forms of sexual exploitation and abuse, it is no surprise when the company’s ethos and policies reflect their harmful behavior.
Amazon is a target of our 2017 Dirty Dozen List for selling sexually exploitive items in several categories, from pimping and sex trafficking how-to manuals, to sexually graphic and degrading original Amazon Prime content, photography books featuring eroticized child nudity, and more. Amazon’s laissez fair attitude toward its sale of sexually exploitive materials is not happening in a vacuum.
Following the Harvey Weinstein scandal, more victims feel empowered to speak out against high-profile perpetrators of sexual abuse. But the cultural outcry shouldn’t end there. Today, we again are calling on Amazon’s leadership to stop turning a blind eye the role their services play in perpetuating sexual exploitation for the rest of the American people.
Powerful corporations need to be held accountable for the influence they have on society. Unfortunately, Amazon is responsible for perpetuating a culture of sexual exploitation. We offer to meet and work with Amazon to improve these policies, and we will continue to advocate for changes to their corporate ethos and policy.
