For those of you who do not know me, I am one of the biggest "One Tree Hill" fans ever. I have watched the series straight through multiple times, got pissed at Netflix when they took it off in October and I stalk all of the stars on every social media that they have. I hope to someday go to the convention in Wilmington, N.C. and to take pictures at all of the iconic locations. If I ever met James Lafferty, Chad Michael Murray, Sophia Bush, Bethany Joy Lenz, Hilarie Burton or any of the other cast member, I would most definitely fangirl. I’d try to keep my cool but it would be impossible.
Recently some accusations against the showrunner, Mark Schwahn, whom all of us fans have idolized and thanked for so long, have come to light. This is all at a time when many people in the industry are being accused of similar unwanted sexual advances. Firstly, Audrey Wauchope, who was on the writing team for "OTH," accused him of sexual harassment throughout her time on the show. She posted the following words on Twitter:
In support of Wauchope, Sophia Bush, Bethany Joy Lenz, Hilarie Burton, Jana Kramer, Kate Voegle and so many more women who worked on the show as part of the cast or crew wrote a collaborative letter in response. They followed the letter with a variety of tweets symbolizing how they feel now.
Sophia Bush, who played Brooke Davis.
Bethany Joy Lenz, who played Haley James Scott.
Hilarie Burton, who played Peyton Sawyer.
They have been publically and privately supported by various male cast members as well.
James Lafferty, who played Nathan Scott.
Robert Buckley, who played Clay.
Austin Nichols, who played Julian.
Bryan Greenberg, who played Jake.
Lee Norris, who played Mouth.
As well as a variety of others, but this post would go on forever.
I stand with these women. I support them. I will continue to love the show that has given me light in times of darkness, but I will appreciate the art more now that I know what the women who were a part of this show endured to make such a beautiful place for us to call “home.” Thank you for being strong. Thank you for using your voices. Thank you.