Oprah Winfrey says Harvey Weinstein scandal is "triggering a lot of unreleased pain"
When it comes to Hollywood and the growing allegations of sexual harassment and assault against Harvey Weinstein, Oprah Winfrey says she tries to "look for the rainbow in the cloud, whatever is the silver lining."
"This is what I do know for sure: When something this major happens, when you have the fallout, 50 women coming forward, that it's a watershed moment. And 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 said Wednesday on "CBS This Morning."
The "60 Minutes" special contributor and author of newly-released book, "The Wisdom of Sundays: Life-changing Insights from Super Soul Conversations," said she was on set with actresses who had not slept for two or three days. "I was like, what is that? Oh, you guys are suffering from PTSD," Winfrey said.
Everybody has a story, she added.
"If we make this just about Harvey Weinstein, then we will have lost this [watershed] moment," Winfrey said. "I think this is a moment where no matter what business you work in, there have been 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, in order to keep my positioning, 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, I've got to pretend he didn't touch me – I think those days are about to be over."
Winfrey said a lot of women have been silenced.
"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 said.
Watch Winfrey's full "CBS This Morning" interview where she talks about her new book and working with "60 Minutes."
