One is too many.
Posted
October 1, 2009 at
11:57 pm by
Marge
When Roman Polanski dies, he will not be known for his brilliant films like Rosemary’s Baby or The Pianist.
He will be known as a sexual predator who used his riches and fame to escape the hand of the law.
Yes. It is a shame that such a brilliant talent will go down like that.
A bigger shame is that he’s gotten away with it for so long.
As a survivor of sexual crimes, it makes me ill to see that he’s never fully acknowledged his crime or served the penalty for victimizing a 13-year-old girl.
As a mother of a 5-year-old girl, it makes me sick think that we have not eliminated people like this from society. I constantly worry about someone taking her innocence as mine was.
As a citizen of the world, it makes me nauseous that France and Poland are asking the United States to turn a blind eye to this man’s crimes because they occurred more than 35 years ago.
While time gives us perspective on life, it may not heal all wounds, especially these kinds of wounds.
The irony of the situation does not escape me. Polanski’s mother died in a concentration camp. Would the crimes against his family been more forgivable if they had been at the hand of a brilliant German artist? Are the crimes of the Holocaust any less heinous because they occurred more than 75 years ago? How can he and those that defend him not see this? Of, if they do see it, ignore it and claim that hampering Polanski’s artistic potential is more important than justice for his victim?
Does it matter that Polanski used drugs and alcohol to coerce his victim instead of a gun or a knife?
I’m sorry Whoopi Goldberg and Martin Scorsese. Rape is rape. He took her innocence. He’s gotten away with it. He needs to serve his time.
The only thing that’s more disgusting than people defending Polanski’s actions is the energy that’s been expended on this particular case. How many other children are voiceless victims of sexual predators?
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics:
- 67 percent of all victims of sexual assault were juveniles
- One out of seven victims in reported sexual assaults are under six
- Convicted rape and sexual assault offenders serving time in State prisons report that two-thirds of their victims were under the age of 18, and 58% of those–or nearly 4 in 10 imprisoned violent sex offenders–said their victims were aged 12 or younger.
- In 90% of the rapes of children less than 12 years old, the child knew the offender.
That should make you sick.
If you’re a parent, think of your child’s class. There are probably 30 or so kids in that room. By the time they finish high school, how many of them will have their innocence stolen by someone they trusted.
We have a choice here. We can keep the spotlight on Roman Polanski and hold him accountable, or we can focus our energies on protecting out kids from people like him. As much as I’d love to see him pay his price,
I have to choose prevention over punishment. One more victim is one too many.
Learn more about what you can do to keep our kids safe at organizations like Prevent Child Abuse America or The Child Abuse Prevention Association or an organization near you.
Posted
May 27, 2009 at
1:42 pm by
Posted
May 25, 2009 at
7:11 pm by
Posted
April 15, 2009 at
9:07 pm by
