Harvey Weinstein's accusers are getting attention because they're white and famous, says Jane Fonda

She says women of colour have made similar accusations for years

Fonda is an actress and former model (Rex)

Actress Jane Fonda sees a world in which allegations against people like Harvey Weinstein only gain traction because the accusers are “famous and white”.

Fonda, speaking as a representative of The Women’s Media Centre on MSNBC’s “All In With Chris Hayes”, said that women of color have made similar accusations of sexual assault and harassment for years, but that people tend not to pay as much attention to that.

“It fees like something has shifted,” Fonda said. “It’s too bad that it’s probably because so many of the women that were assaulted by Harvey Weinstein are famous and white and everybody knows them. This has been going on a long time to black women and other women of colour, and it doesn’t get out quite the same.”

Weinstein has been accused by over 60 women for alleged acts of sexual harassment and assault, including some accusations of rape. Those accusations, first reported by the New York Times and the New Yorker, have sent shock waves through Hollywood and the country, leading to the professional demise of the accused.

As more and more women came forward with their accusations — many of which detailed a consistent pattern of alleged predatory behavior by Weinstein — the famed Hollywood producer lost several notable positions and titles in the industry. He is no longer employed by the production house he co-founded, and is no longer a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards the Academy Awards.

Women across the country have also come forward with their stories of sexual assault or harassment online in a campaign commonly known as the “#metoo” campaign, raising awareness of the scope of sexual harassment all across the professional and personal spectrum, and of the dangers to women in male-dominated spaces where accusations are frequently ignored.