Should We Separate the Art from the Artist?
Welcome back lovelies! I took a little break last week as things just felt a little too overwhelming and it was so nice to rest! But now I am back, rejuvenated, and ready to go! This week is going to a lot of politically heavy posts, but they are all things that need to be said and dealt with, so I encourage you to read all the posts in full and check out the links. Now on to today’s post!
Last year in a creative writing class, we discussed a very controversial writer. His name is Junot Diaz, and while his writing was extremely exceptional, we learned after reading a couple of his stories that he was a sex offender. At first, he had come out during the first few weeks of the “Me Too” movement, and it was seen as a great thing that a man was coming out and saying he had also been sexually assaulted. He explained he had been molested throughout his childhood by various men in his life, which is partially what fueled his writing. He was reverted as an amazing, strong man who would help other men come forward with their sexual assaults. But, a few days after he publicly made this statement, a bunch of women came out saying that while he may have been molested as a child, he had also raped and sexually assaulted them. He confirmed it all by saying that it was because he was assaulted that he then turned around and assaulted these women as if that made it ok.
There is a lot to unpack in that story, one main thing being that many people who are assaulted never go on to assault others and that should not be cited as a valid reason for his abuse. But the main issue is that this ended with many people thinking this was ok. He had been damaged, so that was why this was happening and why he had been abusing these women. It was seen as something that wasn’t his fault. In my class and the media, it sparked a debate on the idea of “Should We Separate the Art from the Artist?” I have been working on this post for quite a long time, and it was recently re-ignited as something I wanted to talk about when I was work a couple of nights ago. A guy I work with said he “didn’t agree” that it was ok for so many football players to beat up their wives, but that we should just look past those things since they are such great athletes. I’m sorry, but what?
This isn’t something that is just for athletes and writers. This is also after Chris Brown still somehow has a career after he beat up Rihanna, and amid the shit show that is the R. Kelly scandal. Even though I think it could be argued that what R.Kelly did is worse than what Chris Brown did, they are both horrible and we do not know that Chris Brown hasn’t continued to abuse women he is with. Or that he didn’t abuse Rhianna in their home. Just because it isn’t super public doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. Just because a woman doesn’t report abuse doesn’t mean it’s not happening.
In the era of “Me Too” we have seen some pretty big names going down for sexual assault and abuse that they have perpetrated. Men like Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lower, Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K, Charlie Rose, and so much more have all lost their once deeply regarded careers to women finally being able to tell their stories. So why does the same not apply when it comes to artists?
One of the reasons maybe because they are supposed to be tortured souls. Art is often one of the few things we accept to be created under the influence of alcohol or drugs, as well as allowing the artist to talk about things we may not usually deem appropriate. Eminem and Rihanna created a song all about the complicated interworking of a relationship that is violent. Many a song has been written about cheating and either how awful it is or how everyone does it and it’s fine. We all accept this and let it go since the human experience is weird and we all face different issues and trials in life. It is wonderful to have a million different points of view, but it is starting to come at the cost of women and their safety. Chris Brown did not serve any time for his domestic violence conviction. He got five years of probation and had to do some community service even though it was a felony charge. Not including the rich and the famous, most men never end up facing any jail time for domestic violence allegations even if they are felony charges.
This becomes a bigger issue than just not listening to these artists anymore. It becomes an issue of listening to women and taking their stories and accusations as valid. When someone commits murder, the media doesn’t say “so and so allegedly killed that person.” They often say “so and so was seen leaving the house 12 minutes before the body was found so therefor they committed the murder”. And even if there isn’t a fact like that to back it up, they still never use the word “allegedly” when talking about it. When it comes to sexual assault survivors or domestic violence survivors, it is always “allegedly.” No one listens to women and takes them seriously unless there is an undisputed piece of evidence that can link the woman who is accusing, to the man she accused. Society automatically believes the man first and waits around to see if the woman can prove it. Once she does, the man is either given no jail time or a sentence so minuscule that they may as well have not gone to jail at all. Most don’t even have to register as sex offenders and are still allowed to purchase a firearm.
The last example I will use is Michael Jackson. He is regarded as one of the most amazing musical artists in history, with a career that spans decades and fans that do as well. There have been countless documentaries made about his career and how amazing he was as an artist, as well as all of the issues he faced as a tortured artist. One thing that wasn’t taken very seriously until recently was the allegations that he molested young boys. This was something that was in the media but they were children and had a rough time coming forward and speaking their minds (obviously). He stood trial and was ultimately deemed not guilty on a technicality and roamed free up until his death. The documentary Finding Neverland was an eye-opener for most people who either were too young to remember the allegations when they happened or had just simply not believed them. While it is hard to ask an entire nation not to support one of its most revered musical artists, and he is dead so all proceeds go to his family and not him, he is perhaps the best example of no longer supporting an artist when they are accused of sexual assault.
The best way to change this is would be with law reform, but that takes a lot more time and convincing than other things we can do. The next best thing lies in the power of the people and not the lawmakers, and that is not supporting domestic abusers and rapists. We have to no longer read the books or articles they write. No longer listen to their music or watch their movies and television shows. We have to no longer tune in to their games and support their teams. While this all can seem like a lot and not like something that will fully change the landscape of the world we live in, it most certainly will. We have seen it already with leads being removed from television shows and Harvey Weinstein was sentenced. We have seen it with the recent protests where laws have been changed and cops have been arrested. While the current civil rights movement has a lot to still accomplish, there have been tiny victories and that is all due to what we as the people will tolerate. This messed up country of ours responds to money and if there is any drop in revenue in any industry, it responds by solving that problem. Leave bars if they are playing music by domestic abusers or playing games with team members who are convicted rapists. Remove yourself from these men in any capacity you can and encourage those around you to do the same. By showing the industries that enable these men to still have careers that the public isn’t going to tolerate it anymore, we take back the power and prove we will no longer tolerate this kind of behavior.
Madey
Important Links and Sources:
Finding Neverland on Netflix
Surviving R. Kelly on Netflix
Men brought down by the Me Too movement
Cover art found here