Hardy Haberman Flagging Left
In the wave of #metoo revelations, comes the news that actor Anthony Rapp (Rent, Star Trek: Discovery) was allegedly assaulted by actor Kevin Spacey when they were both performing on Broadway. The bigger problem was Rapp’s age at the time: 14.
Once the allegations surfaced, Kevin Spacey hastily issued a half-hearted apology, noting, “I honestly do not remember the encounter.”
“Encounter”? Seriously?
You were an adult, and you assaulted a 14-year-old boy. That is not an “encounter;” it’s an assault. And frankly, it’s the kind of assault that every homophobic preacher and politician will be salivating over.
Then Spacey had the audacity to make the “bold” move of coming out.
Again, “bold”?
After decades of rumors and speculation, for him to come out as a result of sexual assault charges that, if true, would be pedophilia, is not bold. It’s bullshit.
I am glad for anyone who comes out. But I am not glad when it happens only as a result of being exposed as an alleged sexual predator. I feel pretty sure Kevin Spacey won’t be appearing on Broadway again anytime soon, but his acting in this case is award-worthy.
Spacey’s claim to somehow “not remember” is a complete cop-out. The days when a same-sex encounter could be chalked-up to alcohol are over. And there has never been a time when assaulting a minor and using “I was drunk” as an excuse was acceptable.
There is no excuse for this kind of behavior, and coming out is not going to serve as a smokescreen — no matter how convincingly you deliver the lines.
The idea that Hollywood is full of “casting couch” stories is nothing new. The accusations against Harvey Weinstein did not surprise anyone in the movie business. That speaks volumes as to the complicit atmosphere that enabled a predator to continue his sexual assaults with impunity.
The Kevin Spacey incident shows how showbiz fame can immunize a person from a lot of things. But as with Weinstein, eventually the truth comes out when someone has the courage to buck the system and say something.
Anthony Rapp took a big chance by speaking out. Though Spacey is not a high-powered producer, he is a top-tier actor, and speaking out might have come at a significant cost to Rapp.
Rapp, in an interview with BuzzFeed, said he decided to come forward after several women spoke against Weinstein. He characterized his accusations as, “not to simply air a grievance, but to try to shine another light on the decades of behavior that have been allowed to continue because of many people, including myself, being silent. … I’m feeling really awake to the moment that we’re living in, and I’m hopeful that this can make a difference.”
His statement is indeed making a difference. It is shining a light on the problem that exists both for women and men when faced with sexual advances from people more powerful than themselves. As long as individuals feel that reporting a violation is riskier than just keeping it a secret, they will remain silent.
In the age of Trump, when sexual assault is excused as “locker room talk” and racist tirades are allowed to be broadcast with impunity, speaking out is a defiant act. It comes from the courage that speaking out is the only defense of such an outrage. Mr. Spacey needs to remember that, so I will say it again.
Speaking out against sexual abuse is courageous. Coming out to make an excuse for sexual abuse is cowardly.
Forced out of the closet: Spacey wasn’t being brave, he was deflecting
Oh puhleeze. Anthony Rapp figured out a quick and dirty way to boost his Klout score by globbing on to the current national groping panic “Standing on the shoulders of these brave women….” yeah right. Those “brave” women who took Harvey’s settlement money and consigned their sisters to his lecherous advances. So much for Feminist solidarity. And poor poor little Anthony Rapp -Kevin Spacey laid on him! How shocking! How terrible for him! A child of only 14! And still traumatized after 31 yeats. My heart bleeds.
Carl,
There is more to this than a panic over “groping”. Rape and pedophilia. Not even in the same category.
#metoo
Have you experienced any type of sexual assault? It certainly doesn’t sound like it. And until you’ve walked in their shoes, who are you to judge with such vitriolic words?
Excuse me, but my judgment was based on Mr. Rapp’s own words. Yours are based on prejudice. Mr. Rapp did not claim he was either raped or assaulted – something he surely would have done if he had some credible basis for making it. Yet you and Mr. Haberman both insist that he was assaulted and/or raped. Which I can only assume means y’all were at Spacey’s party that night and saw what happened. Which begs the question: why didn’t you reported it? Or were you not actually at the party? And if neither of you were at the party, on what basis did y’all arrive at the conclusion that he was either raped or assaulted? Do y’all know Mr. Rapp personally? Did he share this additional information with you? Can you personally attest to his honesty and integrity? How do you know that his “bombshell” wasn’t an attempt to raise his social media cred?
We’ve been down this road before. The 80s and early 90s were replete with lurid allegations of child sex abuse based on the now discredited theory of “repressed memories” and cynical coaching of alleged victims. At the same time, among the more Evangelically inclined, we endured the ridiculous “Satanic Panic” scare. Innocent people went to jail, lives, reputations and careers were ruined by latter-day Cotton Mathers insisting that we had to forgo common sense and critical judgment to “believe the victims.”
Very sorry if you experienced some sort of sexual assault or harassment. But still it does not entitle you or any other ‘victim’ the right to indulge your prejudices and shame those of us who insist on using our critical faculties when confronted with an unsupported allegation 31 years after the fact. We all have our own tale of woe. Some of us move on and grow up; others use it as a sorry excuse for our own failures and shabby behavior. #timetogrowup