Silence is not just assent, it is complicit consent - Part 7
A lot of people were surprised today when Louis CK admitted that the accusations against him published by the New York Times were all true. You can read the complete text of his statement in another New York Times piece. Here is an excerpt:
"These stories are true. At the time, I said to myself that what I did was O.K. because I never showed a woman my dick without asking first, which is also true. But what I learned later in life, too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking them to look at your dick isn’t a question. It’s a predicament for them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And I wielded that power irresponsibly. I have been remorseful of my actions. And I’ve tried to learn from them. And run from them. Now I’m aware of the extent of the impact of my actions."
To use an old @midnight metaphor, a lot of people are giving him "points" for having owned up to what he did. Sorry Louie, but you get no points from me. Had the NYT not published this piece, you would almost certainly have continued to ignore these allegations that have been discussed since you treated women this way. You may now be "aware" of your abuse of your "power" in these situations, but you did nothing until your hand was forced. An apology is certainly better than the denials being offered by others accused of far worse, but it is not "good enough." Not nearly good enough.
His management company, 3 Arts and his publicist have dropped him. Will 3 Arts investigate what his manager, Dave Becky actually did in what Louis CK described as "mediating?"
His new film's release has been scrapped. FX, HBO and Netflix have all cut ties with him. His website lists no upcoming tour dates. His career is in freefall, and yet some commentators in the entertainment industry are saying his career can be salvaged, thanks to this apology. Would you pay money to see anything involving Louis CK in the future? I will not.
* * *
Ellen Page posted something on Facebook describing what she alleges Brett Ratner did to her on the set of X-Men: The Last Stand. Here is an excerpt:
“You should fuck her to make her realize she’s gay.” He said this about me during a cast and crew “meet and greet” before we began filming, X Men: The Last Stand. I was eighteen years old. He looked at a woman standing next to me, ten years my senior, pointed to me and said: “You should fuck her to make her realize she’s gay.” He was the film’s director, Brett Ratner.
I was a young adult who had not yet come out to myself. I knew I was gay, but did not know, so to speak. I felt violated when this happened. I looked down at my feet, didn’t say a word and watched as no one else did either. This man, who had cast me in the film, started our months of filming at a work event with this horrific, unchallenged plea. He “outed” me with no regard for my well-being, an act we all recognize as homophobic. I proceeded to watch him on set say degrading things to women. I remember a woman walking by the monitor as he made a comment about her “flappy pussy”.
Disgusting. Horrific. Unacceptable. But not criminal.
As we continue to be overwhelmed with new accusations coming faster and faster, it is important to remember a few things. Rape and sexual assault are not the same as sexual harassment. Unwanted touching is not the same as telling an inappropriate joke. They are all wrong. But there are degrees of wrong and we cannot conflate every single accusation with the rape charges being leveled by Paz de La Huerta and others against Harvey Weinstein. He retains the presumption of innocence in the criminal and civil court systems, although I believe him to have done what he is accused of doing.
We should not give a pass to anyone for any improper action of harassment. But we shouldn't conflate them with rape either.
* * *
Today we've seen George Takei accused of groping a male model back in 1981. TVLine.com is reporting that Andrew Kreisberg has been suspended from his duties as showrunner for the CW/Warner Brothers TV show The Flash (and others he is a producer on) because of numerous allegations of "... sexual harassment and inappropriate physical contact." In the wake of Henry Dreyfuss, son of Oscar-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss having accused Kevin Spacey, now Richard Dreyfuss stands accused of exposing himself to a woman in his trailer during production of a TV comedy special. He denies the allegation.
"These stories are true. At the time, I said to myself that what I did was O.K. because I never showed a woman my dick without asking first, which is also true. But what I learned later in life, too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking them to look at your dick isn’t a question. It’s a predicament for them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And I wielded that power irresponsibly. I have been remorseful of my actions. And I’ve tried to learn from them. And run from them. Now I’m aware of the extent of the impact of my actions."
To use an old @midnight metaphor, a lot of people are giving him "points" for having owned up to what he did. Sorry Louie, but you get no points from me. Had the NYT not published this piece, you would almost certainly have continued to ignore these allegations that have been discussed since you treated women this way. You may now be "aware" of your abuse of your "power" in these situations, but you did nothing until your hand was forced. An apology is certainly better than the denials being offered by others accused of far worse, but it is not "good enough." Not nearly good enough.
His management company, 3 Arts and his publicist have dropped him. Will 3 Arts investigate what his manager, Dave Becky actually did in what Louis CK described as "mediating?"
His new film's release has been scrapped. FX, HBO and Netflix have all cut ties with him. His website lists no upcoming tour dates. His career is in freefall, and yet some commentators in the entertainment industry are saying his career can be salvaged, thanks to this apology. Would you pay money to see anything involving Louis CK in the future? I will not.
* * *
Ellen Page posted something on Facebook describing what she alleges Brett Ratner did to her on the set of X-Men: The Last Stand. Here is an excerpt:
“You should fuck her to make her realize she’s gay.” He said this about me during a cast and crew “meet and greet” before we began filming, X Men: The Last Stand. I was eighteen years old. He looked at a woman standing next to me, ten years my senior, pointed to me and said: “You should fuck her to make her realize she’s gay.” He was the film’s director, Brett Ratner.
I was a young adult who had not yet come out to myself. I knew I was gay, but did not know, so to speak. I felt violated when this happened. I looked down at my feet, didn’t say a word and watched as no one else did either. This man, who had cast me in the film, started our months of filming at a work event with this horrific, unchallenged plea. He “outed” me with no regard for my well-being, an act we all recognize as homophobic. I proceeded to watch him on set say degrading things to women. I remember a woman walking by the monitor as he made a comment about her “flappy pussy”.
Disgusting. Horrific. Unacceptable. But not criminal.
As we continue to be overwhelmed with new accusations coming faster and faster, it is important to remember a few things. Rape and sexual assault are not the same as sexual harassment. Unwanted touching is not the same as telling an inappropriate joke. They are all wrong. But there are degrees of wrong and we cannot conflate every single accusation with the rape charges being leveled by Paz de La Huerta and others against Harvey Weinstein. He retains the presumption of innocence in the criminal and civil court systems, although I believe him to have done what he is accused of doing.
We should not give a pass to anyone for any improper action of harassment. But we shouldn't conflate them with rape either.
* * *
Today we've seen George Takei accused of groping a male model back in 1981. TVLine.com is reporting that Andrew Kreisberg has been suspended from his duties as showrunner for the CW/Warner Brothers TV show The Flash (and others he is a producer on) because of numerous allegations of "... sexual harassment and inappropriate physical contact." In the wake of Henry Dreyfuss, son of Oscar-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss having accused Kevin Spacey, now Richard Dreyfuss stands accused of exposing himself to a woman in his trailer during production of a TV comedy special. He denies the allegation.
posted by me at 9:14 PM
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