WHAT THE HELL IS “RAPE-RAPE”?
We’ve all heard the news: Roman Polanski is a rapist who has never done the time for the crime (and in case you haven’t, here’s a great Salon article by Kate Harding with all the details, big and small). He pled guilty, was convicted in a California court of law, and then skipped town before he could be sentenced. For whatever reason, it has taken some truly bungling authorities 31 years to arrest the guy—who wasn’t exactly hiding himself in a cave like Osama Bin Laden. It’s a ridiculous story, one that has obviously polarized opinions, especially when it comes to Hollywood versus The Rest Of Us.
In an outrageous statement, Whoopi Goldberg has been cited in an article by the UK’s Telegraph as saying that Polanski didn’t commit “rape-rape.” The direct quote was as follows:
I know it wasn’t rape-rape. I think it was something else, but I don’t believe it was rape-rape.
My question is: what the hell is “rape-rape”? What other kind of rape is there?
Roman Polanski, rapist
Let’s get one thing clear, up front: rape doesn’t “just happen.” Rape isn’t a “grey area.” Rape is crystal fucking clear. Here’s an example: a 44-year-old man is in a bedroom with a 13-year-old girl. The man gives the girl a Quaalude and some champagne. He then asks if he can have sex with her. The girl says no. The man forces himself upon the girl and has sex with her. Then the man asks the girl if he can anally penetrate her. The girl says no. Perhaps she is crying, at this point. The man forces himself inside her, and cums. Is this rape?
You’re damn right it is. And guess what? That’s exactly what happened in Roman Polanski’s “rape-rape” scenario, back in 1977.
The rape did not occur because the girl was too young to consent (although that is also a part of the problem in this particular scenario); it occurred because she said no, and he did it anyway. This is the definition of rape, after all. It is nonconsensual sex. Not some grey area where maybe she said yes and meant no, or maybe she said no and meant yes. She said no, she meant no, he did it anyway. Repeatedly. How does this not add up to rape?
Hollywood actors and actresses, directors and moguls are rallying around Polanski right now, defending him against accusations that have already been proven in a court of law. He has been conviced of rape; there is no denying this. He has also eluded punishment for more than 30 years, more than my entire lifetime.
Are we really going to say, “Oh, sorry, Roman. It’s all just been a big misunderstanding. You’re right; that girl was obviously some kind of slut with an over-aggressive stage mother, and she deserved to have your cock shoved into all her holes for a shot at stardom!”
Because currently, that’s what Hollywood is saying.
If it’s not “rape-rape,” Whoopi, then what the hell is it? Why don’t you familiarize yourself with the concept of rape, singular, before shooting your mouth off? Why don’t you think about what it might be like to be forcibly penetrated by someone, in various orifices, and then come back and tell me what you think about rape? Why don’t you think about all the times you’ve been propositioned in a casting-couch type of situation, particularly when you were a young and impressionable person—maybe, say, 13?—and then let me know how you feel about Roman “The Rapist” Polanski.
I don’t care what kind of movies he makes, or what his friends say about him. The fact is, the guy used drugs and alcohol and promises of fame and fortune to seduce a young girl, then took out his cock and forced it upon her. This is not swell, or classy, or nice. It is not something most people can forgive and forget. It is something that causes trauma, damage to one’s self-esteem and ability to trust, and even sexual issues with later partners. Rape is an emotionally and physically destructive act, a power-play, a way of men asserting their power over other human beings and making them feel that no matter what they do or achieve, they can always be a victim, abused, destroyed.
It’s disgusting that Hollywood puts rapists like Roman Polanski up on pedestals like this, that there are myths perpetuated about victims of rape like “She wanted it,” and “She asked for it,” or even “She deserved it.” No one deserves to be raped. And no one who rapes deserves to elude punishment. Not even Roman Polanski.
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