Why Is Amber Heard Verdict Being Used To Pass A Judgement On Feminism?

With the much-publicised verdict in the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard case, are we on the verge of seeing the #MeToo movement end? Has the feminist movement across the globe suffered a setback today? The fight against domestic violence, sexual assault, and freedom of speech is an everyday struggle for women, and yet a section of social media is leaving no stones unturned to brand the entire movement as a "sham" with the Amber Heard verdict.

How it all began

Actor Amber Heard had written an article for The Washington Post in 2018, in which she had written, “Two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse.” The article did not name Depp, but his lawyers argued that the piece was about him and that it was defamatory in nature. This one sentence was the reason that Depp sought $50m from his former wife.

Depp filed a defamation suit against Heard in a Virginia court, for which the verdict was read out on June 1 after six weeks of televised trial. The jury found that Heard has actually defamed Depp and she acted with “malice,” when she portrayed herself as a victim of domestic abuse. What is surprising is that the same jury also found that one of Depp’s lawyers’ had defamed Heard when he had supposedly said that her account of abuse was “a hoax.” 

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The verdict contradicts a ruling by a British court in 2020, for Depp’s lawsuit against the British tabloid The Sun, in which the actor had sued the tabloid for defamation after an article referred to him as a “wife beater”. In it the British judge found that the news outlet's characterisation of the Hollywood actor was “substantially true”. That same trial also found that Depp physically abused Heard on at least 12 occasions. With all this background, the actor, his lawyers and his fans still claim that it was his former wife Heard, not Depp, who abused him while they were married.

The verdict sanctions domestic abuse

Let’s not fool ourselves that this is just an ex-couple’s squabble, this bizarre and devoid of logic and unjust ruling is in a way sanctioning Depp’s alleged domestic abuse of Heard. How I see it is that it’s a punishment of sorts for Heard for speaking up. And I am afraid it will have a devastating effect on domestic abuse and other forms of abuse survivors, as it will discourage them from standing up and calling out abusers. Women survivors now know that they cannot speak about their violent experiences at men’s hands without the threat of a ruinous libel suit. That’s how devastating this verdict is.

Abusive men have now found a way to fight back sexual harassment allegations, violent abuse and #MeToo allegations in one go.

Live streaming helped social media turned jury

The verdict was out much before the court verdict, thanks to live streaming. The trial was live streamed for everyone to see and pass judgements it seemed. Heard was not just on trial inside the court but outside too. Depp’s supporters and fans left no stone unturned to humiliate Heard. She was accused of faking the photos of her injury which she claimed were due to Depp’s alleged beatings. They said she painted those bruises on with makeup and clicked pictures. She was even accused by this self-declared jury of convincing the multiple witnesses who say Depp abused them to lie, under oath, or years.

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When Heard finally took the stand to tell her side of the story, she obviously became emotional while recounting how Depp allegedly manipulated and controlled her, hit her, surveilled her and even sexually assaulted her. This started a meme fest, we saw celebrities and ordinary people, and even some brands took to social media to mock or undermine Heard.

Screenshots of Heard’s weeping face were taken and memes were made. Many lip-synced and mocked her testimony as she recalled the alleged abuse by Depp. Sadly, the audio of her crying also became a TikTok trend.

Now, I feel this cruelty that Heard faced has now been sanctified and compounded by the jury, who went beyond mocking her and have have declared that she actually broke the law by speaking up for herself. The trial turned into a display of misogyny by the public.

The verdict is against all women who speak up

Was this trial a backlash against #MeToo? While most of the viciousness was directed at Heard, it is hard not to feel that in reality, it is directed at all women, particularly at those who spoke out during #MeToo movement about gendered abuse and sexual violence. Amber Heard has been made into a symbol of a movement that many view with fear and hatred, and now we must all bear the brunt. Don’t you think Heard is still in an abusive relationship, not just with Depp, but with the whole world, where power, gender, meme campaigns and public image influence public opinion heavily?

This verdict is a sad report on what happens to women who accuse men of abuse. Women can get publicly pilloried, professionally blacklisted, socially ostracized, mocked endlessly on social media and finally sued. Women are punished for coming forward.

Views expressed are the author's own.