Pop Culture Curmudgeon

After all of the hullabaloo of the past week about Mackenzie Phillips and Roman Polanski, I’m tired.

I’m tired of hearing about incest and rape. I’m tired of apologists trying to ignore the fact that these crimes were committed.

Is it okay that John Phillips coerced his daughter into a sexual relationship because he also happened to be an influential musician? I don’t think so.

Is it okay that Roman Polanski drugged and raped a 13-year-old girl, admitted to the crime in a binding legal document, and then fled the country just because he is an amazing director? Again, not so much.

I am appalled at all of the people who say that he suffered enough. I’m sorry, but living in Europe actually sounds pretty cool, so unless France is actually a gulag with really good PR department, I don’t but that argument.

I’m even more appalled by those who refuse to admit that what he did was a crime. The girl testified that she told him no more than once. She was also well below the age of consent, so even if she had said yes, it would still be a violation of a child.

One of the authors I follow on Twitter posed an interesting question:

eliza_writes if he had drugged & raped a 13 year old boy, would he have gone free for 30 years?

I responded that not only would he likely have been apprehended, but he also would have been unable to work for a very long time. Eliza agreed, saying that it points out the relative value of boys and girls in our society.

I agree with that assessment, but I also believe it speaks to our fear of homosexuality. Homosexuality challenges gender roles in a way that many think challenges the underlying structure of our society. Even though rape is a crime of power and not sex, the rape of a boy is much more of a taboo in our society because it is “gay.” I mean, would the Catholic priest scandal have been such a big deal in the media and the courts if the victims had been altar girls?

The concept of power is yet another excuse I have heard offered for Polanski’s crime. If he has lived a life in which he felt powerless, I feel sympathy for him. I hope that others can learn about rape prevention from his story. But it is not an excuse. No matter what his family went through, no matter how awful he felt being accused of killing his wife and unborn child, there is no reason to violate a child.

And yet, French and Polish officials, Debra Winger, Harvey Weinstein, and others want to drop the charges and deny that what Polanski did was so terrible. It just goes back to my argument this summer that celebrities are held to a different standard. Athletic, musical, or artistic talent is no excuse for committing vile acts.

And that, loyal readers, is the total airtime I will allow to these two stories. Thank you for indulging me. I will try not to trip on my soapbox on the way out.