Salisbury Soroptimists welcomed Zelda Perkins CBE and specially invited guests to their club meeting on Thursday, 22 October.
Zelda spoke about the organisation she founded in 2021, Can’t Buy My Silence UK.
Zelda made headlines in 2017 when she became the first of Harvey Weinstein’s former assistants to publicly break the terms of a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), helping to bring the issue of silencing agreements around the behaviour of sexual predators into the spotlight and contributing to the momentum behind the #MeToo movement.
The audience were immensely grateful that Zelda took the time to share her experiences and insights. You could hear a pin drop as she described her encounters with the legal system and the challenges she and her colleague faced as the NDA was agreed.
She told us: “And you have to imagine, we were two young women who think that they're doing the right thing and who have been treated like criminals, been intimidated, been pushed into a very, very frightening situation. And, you know, the only way I can really describe this is as if we were being legally waterboarded. All of the techniques they used were hugely intimidating to two young women”.
She ended with a compelling message to all Soroptimists: keep lobbying for women’s rights and hold those in power to account.
She reminded members that those representing us in Westminster are there to work on our behalf, encouraging everyone to use their voices to press for meaningful change.
Her visit was a powerful reminder of why Soroptimists' work remains so important: advocating for women and girls, challenging inequality, and working towards a world where every woman’s voice can be heard. If you would like to become a Soroptimist, please do visit their website: www.sigbi.org/salisbury/
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