Feminist Twitter has responded with fury at comedian Louis C.K. returning to stand-up after a nine-month hiatus in the wake of #MeToo allegations, with top female comics sharing their own experiences of abuse in the industry.
Feminist writer Roxane Gay wrote a blistering piece in the, critiquing the tendency to leap to the defence of perpetrators with a focus on their losses as opposed to the victims.
"I have to believe there is a path to redemption for people who have done wrong, but nine months of self-imposed exile in financial comfort is not a point along that path....Take Louis C.K. Not only did he expose himself to and masturbate in front of female comics; the actions of people in his employ reportedly worked to impede his victims’ careers. Still, he has remained in control of the narrative. He gets to break the rules, and then he gets to establish rules of his own when he must answer for his misdeeds."
Her sentiments were echoed by others on Twitter, furious at the way the comedian had been able to resurrect his career without any repercussions.
Comedian Kathy Griffin wrote a thread talking about the barriers and abuse endured by female comic friends that forced many to leave the industry.
"I've known this woman for years, told me she was basically done with being a comic. She was tired of going up against the boys club...exhausted with being made to prove herself -- something successful male comics don't have to do -- after over 15 years in the biz," she tweeted.
Griffin said the impact of this female exodus for the public was that points of view they are exposed to in order to interpret the world are overwhelmingly male.
"What happens behind the scenes in entertainment, the people who are in the business, impacts the media you consume...without balance you get a male dominated view point," she tweeted.
Australian comic Zoe Coombs Marr labelled Louis CK's return as a 'slap' in the face. In a powerful thread she recounts being the only woman in male-dominated line-ups and forced to endure sexually violent jokes. It was this culture of misogyny that forced her to quit the business.
"This CK crap is a slap in all our faces. I know SO MANY hilarious women who quit because they can’t take it anymore, or have their careers end because they’re labelled difficult. Or worse. I found a way to stay in there in disguise but only just. I’m LUCKY," Coombs Marr tweeted.
While Louis C.K. issued an apology in response to the last year, he hasn't commented on his return, further plans, or the furious response to his comeback.
