Queen strips Harvey Weinstein of honorary CBE
The Queen has stripped disgraced Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein of his honorary award after he was found guilty of sexual assault and rape.
Weinstein is serving a 23-year prison sentence in the US after he was convicted in February of sexually assaulting a former production assistant and raping an actress. He has appealed the conviction.
The Queen has today cancelled Weinstein’s honorary CBE. The decision was made at a meeting of the Honours Forfeiture Committee, which is independent from government.
“The Queen has directed that the appointment of Harvey Weinstein to be an Honorary Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated 29 January 2004, shall be cancelled and annulled,” an official announcement said, according to Reuters.
More than 100 women, including famous actresses, came forward to accuse Weinstein of sexual misconduct stretching back decades.
The allegations against Weinstein, which he has denied, kicked off the #MeToo movement.
At his trial earlier this year, prosecutors portrayed him as a serial predator who preyed upon women, manipulating them with promises of career advancement in Hollywood.
“The young struggling dreamers were not even people to him. He could take what he wanted knowing there was very little anyone could do about it,” Manhattan assistant district attorney Joan Illuzzi told the court.
Weinstein said he was worried about the “thousands of men who are losing due process” during the #MeToo movement.