Are You Listening? – Survivors are Finding Their Voice

ARTICLE BY: Daryl Smith

Leaving Neverland and Surviving R-Kelly are two recent documentaries gaining traction in the press due to the serious allegations they make against well-known celebrities – Michael Jackson and R-Kelly. Whether you choose to believe the accusations made or not, it is important to understand the severity of them and the implications for the people purportedly involved.

Leaving Neverland tells the stories of two young boys who Jackson befriended at the height of his stardom. James Safechuck and Wade Robson claim that, when they were children aged 10 and 7 respectively, Jackson began a long-running relationship with them which culminated with him sexually abusing both of them at his Neverland ranch in California. The allegations are not the first of their kind to be made against Jackson, who died in 2009.

Jordan Chandler and Gavin Arvizo are two others who alleged that Jackson abused them as children, Chandler in 1993 and Arvizo in 2003. Neither times resulted in a conviction, but Jackson’s legacy will forever be surrounded by the controversy that these incidents have brought forth. Leaving Neverland has fetched the assertions back into the forefront and while some, including Jackson’s estate, avidly defend him, others want to see what they perceive as justice brought against the deceased singer.

Surviving R-Kelly, originally airing in January 2019, is a documentary detailing R-Kelly’s (real name Robert Sylvester Kelly) history of alleged sexual abuse. R-Kelly was celebrated as one of the most influential R&B artists of all time until rumours of his predatory behaviour, abuse and paedophilia arose. The documentary focused on individuals who claim to have been subjected to this type of behaviour at his hands, coming forward and telling their stories and the trauma they had suffered.

As with Jackson, the documentary is not the first to assert that R-Kelly was responsible for such heinous acts. In 2008, he was taken to court on fourteen charges of child pornography, only to be found not guilty on all fourteen counts. One of the pieces of evidence the prosecution used was a VHS tape, the origin of which was unknown, that they claimed showed R-Kelly having sexual relations with an underage female – they pointed out that the man in the video had a mole on his back, just as R-Kelly does.

The VHS tape is important due to the fact that two more VHS tapes have arisen since Surviving R-Kelly was first aired, a second at the end of the February and a third in the last few days preceding this article. According to the prosecution, both tapes contain footage of R-Kelly having sex with other underage females and verbally referring to them as such.

On 22^nd February 2019, four separate grand juries indicted him on ten counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse before he was arrested. He was subsequently released on a $100,000 bail and he awaits his next hearing on 13^th March 2019.

Whichever side you choose to be on in these specific cases, it is important to understand the necessity to give the individuals, who have been the victims of sexual abuse, a voice. The #MeToo movement has been fundamental in helping empower survivors into telling their stories and gain the justice they deserve. It has allowed people such as Sammy Woodhouse, survivor of the atrocious Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal, to speak about her ordeal and help others to come forward.

She chose to wave her right to anonymity to fight against a rejection of her claim for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA). Her rejection, on the basis that she consented to her abuse, was one of numerous refused significant sums of money by the CICA from the same incident. Eventually, she won her Appeal against the decision and has worked with Rape Crisis to recommend further improvements to the CICA.

One of the most recent changes that came as a result of survivors like Miss Woodhouse speaking out, was the removal of the ‘same roof rule’ – this denied compensation to anyone who lived with their abuser prior to 1979. This comes while the government undergoes a review into the many aspects of the CICA that are deemed potentially unfair, including the time limits imposed and the way they assess current unspent convictions.

The hope, from the many individuals including myself, is that the Government will look to make significant changes to the scheme for the first time since 2012. This should make it fairer and far more transparent, allowing survivors who demonstrate the most unbelievable courage to come forward, access to the compensation that they deserve.

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