Shonda Rhimes, Eva Longoria and Jurnee Smollett have stepped down as members of the Time’s Up executive board. Along with fellow board members Christy Haubegger, Hilary Rosen, Michelle Kydd, Katie McGrath and Nina Shaw, the trio issued a letter saying that “it’s time for new leadership.”
“It is crucial to us as a board that the organization remain in service to this seismic, global work to demand equity and disrupt systems that foster discrimination, harassment and abuse. We see the current crisis within TIME’S UP as an important opportunity for growth and change,” a copy of the letter obtained by Deadline reads.
“TIME’S UP is ready for new leadership, and we want to move forcefully toward its new iteration. We have strong faith in the talent and dedication of our interim CEO Monifa Bandele as a leader. As has been announced, Monifa will be overseeing a comprehensive assessment of the organization, in collaboration with an outside consultant, and the input of our stakeholders: survivors and those who work for survivor justice and gender equity in the workplace and beyond.”
This announcement comes less than a month after Time’s Up CEO Tina Tchen stepped down due to her ties to former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Tchen is also accused of telling Time’s Up members not to release a letter of support for Lindsey Boylan, the first woman to accuse Cuomo of sexual assault.
“Now is the time for TIME’S UP to evolve and move forward as there is so much more work to do for women. It is clear that I am not the leader who can accomplish that in this moment,” she wrote.
“I am especially aware that my position at the helm of TIME’S UP has become a painful and divisive focal point, where those very women and other activists who should be working together to fight for change are instead battling each other in harmful ways. Therefore, it is time for me to resign and continue to work for change in other ways.”
At this time, there’s no word as to who will make up the organization’s executive board moving forward.
