Roman Polanski Child Rape Arrest Continues to Confuse Media
Published September 30, 2009 @ 09:07AM PT
When you read the transcripts about how Roman Polanski drugged a 13-year-old girl with alcohol and pills, told her to take all her clothes off and then took advantage of her in a hot tub - only one real conclusion comes to mind: rape rape rape.
Sadly, most of the mainstream media seems to be avoiding this possibility. If you take a look at the coverage to date, much of the media has been unwilling to call a spade a spade and tell the public that the Oscar-winning Hollywood filmmaker did something wrong. Really, really wrong. And he should be in jail regardless of whether or not the incident happened 30 years ago.
Just take a look at some of these headlines - where is the outrage?
The one article I read in the mainstream media that seemed to accurately describe what happened comes from the Los Angeles Times and includes part of the grand jury testimony:
Q: Did you resist at that time?
A: A little bit, but not really because . . .
Q: Because what?
A: Because I was afraid of him.
That's Roman Polanski's 13-year-old victim testifying before a grand jury about how the famous director forced himself on her at Jack Nicholson's Mulholland Drive home in March of 1977.
I'm reading this in the district attorney's office at the Los Angeles County Criminal Courts Building, digging through the Polanski file to refresh my memory of the infamous case, and my blood pressure is rising.
Is it because I'm the parent of a girl?
Maybe that's part of it.
But I wish the renowned legal scholars Harvey Weinstein and Debra Winger, to name just two of Polanski's defenders, were here with me now. I'd like to invite Martin Scorsese, as well, along with David Lynch, who have put their names on a petition calling for Polanski to be freed immediately.
What, because he won an Oscar? Would they speak up for a sex offender who hadn't?
To hear these people tell it, you'd think Polanski was the victim rather than the teenager....
...I'd like to show all these great luminaries the testimony from Polanski's underage victim, as well as Polanski's admission of guilt. Then I'd like to ask whether, if the victim were their daughter, they'd be so cavalier about a crime that was originally charged as sodomy and rape before Polanski agreed to a plea bargain. Would they still support Polanski's wish to remain on the lam living the life of a king, despite the fact that he skipped the U.S. in 1977 before he was sentenced?
Women's Media Center also pushes back on the impotent reporting done by many journalists about this case:
Too often, the media is complicit in misrepresenting or silencing the victims of sexual assault. The Women's Media Center calls on the media to report the unfolding story of the Polanski arrest and possible extradition with clarity and specificity. The rape of a child is at the heart of the case. That is not disputed, and should not be represented as subjective.
The media cannot continue to report on this story as something other than what it is: child rape. That is not a "so-called crime" either. Nor should it be called "sex with a child." And just because Polanksi has a little golden statue on his mantel doesn't mean he can avoid the ramifications of breaking the law - in fact it makes it even worse that he used his power and influence in such a destructive and irresponsible manner.
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Comments (21)
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Author
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Jen Nedeau is a social media consultant, progressive activist, feminist speaker and writer. She currently lives in New York City, where she works full-time as the Director of Digital Strategy at Air America Media. In August 2008, Nedeau was selected to be the Editor of the WomensRights.Change.Org where she facilitates daily discussion about the feminist movement. Additionally, Nedeau volunteers as the Chief Technology Officer for New Leaders Council, a non-profit that offers exclusive training for young leaders. You can follow her on Twitter @HumanFolly or learn more here: www.jennedeau.com.
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I continue to be disgusted with the media calling this "sex with a minor," instead of actually calling it *rape*. There may be a discussion to be had about whether minors of any age can actually consent to an adult, but that's not what happened here. She was drugged, she was afraid, and he raped her. Period.
To call it "sex" instead of "rape" is an ugly attempt to sanitize a truly horriffic event.
Posted by Angie Buhl on 09/30/2009 @ 01:08PM PT
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Miss buhl...
I fail to see why there should be any discussion on whether or not underage kids can consent when its generally accepted and understood that their mental/emotional development at that age doesnt allow for them to have a good and clear understanding of what it is that theyre consenting to or the ramifications of consenting.
Posted by Thomas McHugh on 10/02/2009 @ 06:57PM PT
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I agree. This is insanely wrong. He should face the consequences. Others who defend him just want to ignore the crime.
Posted by Juan Portillo on 09/30/2009 @ 01:48PM PT
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I'm impressed the American system has pursued this, it sends an important message. Polanski was in the driver's seat, he must account for this. What I can't understand is that the victim has ideas of dropping charges. That's what we're hearing here anyway. Maybe there was also a 30 yo "pay-off"? That just turns it into a business deal which leaves Polanski still in the driver's seat.
Posted by Oceania OZ on 09/30/2009 @ 03:27PM PT
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Don't worry. She can't "drop" the charges. According to court records, Polanski already pleaded guilty to the lessor crime of illegal sexual intercourse with a....basically, statuatory rape.
The prosecutor agreed to recommend probation to the judge so that the victim would not have to testify. As part of his plea-arrangement, he spent time in the psychiatric area of a prison while being evaluated to determine if he was a pedophile.
When he fled, he was still awaiting sentencing. Here in the States, determination of guilt and sentencing are two different court processes.
Anyway, Polanski's lawyers told him that the judge was not going to honor the plea-agreement and he ran. (People are saying that the judge illegally renigged on the agreement. That is patently untrue and they know it. It is well within the judge's right to refuse to honor a plea agreement or even change his mind if the agreement does not serve the interest of justice. Which it clearly did not.)
Posted by Beth H on 10/03/2009 @ 07:46PM PT
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I am so happy to have this issue pursued. I am old enough to remember when this happened and how he fled the country. He raped a 13 yr old girl. Why her parents had her there is another story. It baffles me how some people want to minimize his crimes. Whoopi Goldberg saying "it wasn't a rape-rape" What does that mean? The fact that the victim doesn't want this pursued is just another symptom of how our culture does not put enough emphasis on the criminality of rape.
Posted by Melinda Sito on 10/01/2009 @ 09:07AM PT
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He needs to do some serious prison time. This is not a minor crime. It is a major felony.
Posted by Thomas Berg on 10/01/2009 @ 02:33PM PT
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For once mr. berg...
You and I agree.
Posted by Thomas McHugh on 10/02/2009 @ 06:58PM PT
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Oceania OZ, I disagree with your assessment of this rape victim which seems dangerously close to calling her a golddigger. Since she is often painted as immoral and has her life disrupted each time this case makes the new why wouldn't she want this case to finally be over once and for all?
As a rape survivor and volunteer advocate I know the toll criminal rape cases can take on victims and their families. They don't call it secondary trauma for no reason.
Melinda Sito, her parents had her there because it was a modeling job not a date. Polanski sought out an assignment with Vogue Hommes doing a series of photos of teenage girls. Now it is clear that the assignment was dangerous, but there is no evidence that her parents any clue about the danger.
Posted by Marcella Chester on 10/01/2009 @ 05:10PM PT
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You assumed that. It's clear from the news coverage here that the victim doesn't want to revisit this part of her life. Sometimes here in Australia, 'often' would be a better word, football rape is paid off by the football "suits". Later the victim feels she has no comeback if she has accepted the pay-off, and won't come forward. As they say, it's part of the game.
Posted by Oceania OZ on 10/01/2009 @ 09:03PM PT
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I thought of a way I could be even more clear. Think of it as being raped twice. Once for sexual gratification, then to buy your silence. A man in a suit with a black briefcase and a gold Rolex can be a heavy trip. Rape victim advocates here have a hard time getting rape victims to see past the shame of accepting an informal "compensation".
Posted by Oceania OZ on 10/01/2009 @ 11:07PM PT
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Roman Polanski grew up in a world that had no boundries. Having to run for his life leaving his family behind, his wife, the one beautiful flower carrying his child, slaughtered for absolutely no reason, and frankly, I find his movies depressing and gloomy. If this was a modelling assignment, and there was nothing in the contract about physical contact of any kind, the fact that he gave her drugs & alcohol (I assume this and the fact that she did not willingly take them - 13 year old girls did and still do take drugs and alcohol and to become a star many will do anything) then that is rape due to the victim's lack of mental capacity to consent. Age would have nothing to do with it. It's rape, period. I never read his response to these charges, but there are some ambitious girls out there who would try to ruin a famous person who didn't give them what they wanted - a part in a movie, etc. All things considered, Roman Polanski took the coward's way out and fled to Europe. Prison for his kind of charge would be a Bubba deal, unless he served his time in isolation. It is now 30 year later. There are unsolved murder and kidnapping case files gathering dust in the cabinets. Does the taxpayer really have to finance this case because Roman Polanski is famous? He's more famous for being Sharon Tate's husband than for his films, in my opinion. I believe this is between the lawyer for Polanski and the D.A.'s Office who is handling it. Let's hope she doesn't come out with a book. "I was raped in a hot tub by Roman Polanski". And let's hope he leaves adolescent girls alone, not making promises for parts in films to have his way. No way should this incident go by the wayside, but like I said, it is between the two lawyers. The victim should definitely be allowed to confront Roman, and be honest about how what he did affected her life. Then this should be a closed issue.
Posted by Elizabeth Price on 10/01/2009 @ 08:26PM PT
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Elizabeth, I find your dismissal of the seriousness of rape cases and your baseless speculation about the victim in this case to be insulting. There is not one shred of credible evidence to support your speculatative slurs on her character. He admitted in court to having sex with a girl he knew to be 13 and he admitted it in interviews after he fled so he is absolutely guilty of the charge he pleaded guilty to in exchange for the non-statutory rape charges being dropped.
He said in 1 interview: “If I had killed somebody, it wouldn’t have had so much appeal to the press, you see? But… f—ing, you see, and the young girls. Judges want to f— young girls. Juries want to f— young girls. Everyone wants to f— young girls!”
This was not an "incident" it was a crime.
Posted by Marcella Chester on 10/02/2009 @ 10:23PM PT
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Oh Marcella, don't stop there. Why don't you tell her about the time he told a reporter that he just couldn't bring himself to believe he had done anything wrong, when disgussing the rape case.
And that "beautiful flower" who was his one true love...oh yeah, he admitted to cheating on her during their marriage (I can't remember how many times).
Oh then there is the Kinski matter. He began dating Natasha Kinski when she was 15. But I'm sure she looked more like 15 1/2.
And we can't forget about his reputation for illicitly picking up 16 year old girls fromt their boarding schools and driving them to his home for sex when he lived in France.
Oh yeah, the rape was just a one-time thing and he's not a danger to society and we should all just let the lawyers work it out. I could never understand why people post opinions on topics they have no knowledge of.
Posted by Beth H on 10/03/2009 @ 07:25PM PT
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In the interest of truth, I must volunteer that I was wrong about Polanski picking up 16 year old girls and taking them back to his home for sex when he lived in France. That's not correct.
It was Switzerland.
My apologies for the error.
Posted by Beth H on 10/06/2009 @ 10:21AM PT
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ADDENDUM:
I did some further research and found that he wasn't just picking up 16 year old girls. Some were 17,18 and 19. Basically they were high school aged girls at local boarding schools.
Although, seeing as he was apparently 45-55 at the time (couldn't seem to get an exact age), I'm not really sure that was much better. Everything I've been able to find on this man indicates a clear prediliction for very young girls. Polanski willingly admits this prediliction, which, in and of itself, is disturbing as he doesn't seem to recognize the inherent illegality, social impropriety, and immorality associated with it.
Posted by Beth H on 10/11/2009 @ 06:13PM PT
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I agree miss nedeau...
He is guilty of child molestation/rape and needs to be hung.
And yes...It sickens me as well when we allow anyone guilty of such a crime to go free and/or unpunished for any length of time.
Posted by Thomas McHugh on 10/02/2009 @ 06:54PM PT
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Mr. McHugh,
I've been following this story and I was reading over the discussions you and I have been having this month and I found it interesting. That no matter the differences we or any other Americans may have with each other, we are implacably united by our children. For some, it's that profound and natural instinct that we are born with, that constant whisper in our psyche that tells us to protect our young. For many, it's not just a violation of nature, but a violation of God. Either way, Roman Polanski has divided our nation in a way that exposes the truly depraved and united it in a way that exposes what is truly important.
And while, we will quickly go back to arguing the finer points of the economy, the war and health care, after the debate is over, we can settle back in the comfort of knowing that because of Roman Polanski, we will forever be brothers in arms.
So, Mr. McHugh, I disagree with you on health care, but in the final analysis, Roman Polanski and his unscrupulous cohorts are the enemy. You, on the other hand, are my brother.
Posted by Beth H on 10/11/2009 @ 05:50PM PT
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Thank you miss h and I concur. :)
Posted by Thomas McHugh on 10/15/2009 @ 04:02PM PT
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Hi,
On the b-listed blog (a human rights pop culture blog) we ran a poll on what people think fo the Roman Polanski case- see the poll results: - http://blisted.breakthrough.tv/take-the-poll-results-of-our-roman-polanski-quiz-5473
Posted by Breakthrough: building human rights culture on 10/06/2009 @ 10:21AM PT
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Interesting. Had this blog been on the Criminal Justice page here at change.org, the focus would be on defending Polanski, making sure he is kept off a registry, and "re-integrating" him into society. Nice to see people on this particular page have the right idea. Let Polanski pay for what he did. I hope he rots in prison and never gets out.
Posted by Dennis G. on 11/01/2009 @ 12:32AM PT
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