Comedian Bill Cosby sued seven sexual assault victims for defamation. That’s right, Pudding Pops is fighting back using the oldest trick in the book: women who speak out against celebrities who rape them must be doing so only for the money. Way to perpetuate the rape culture, Cos!
Comedian Bill Cosby sued seven sexual assault victims for defamation. That’s right, Pudding Pops is fighting back using the oldest trick in the book: women who speak out against celebrities who rape them must be doing so only for the money. Way to perpetuate the rape culture, Cos!
The fallen star’s suit was filed this past Monday, according to Monique Pressley, Cosby’s attorney. The named plaintiffs are Tamara Green, Therese Serignese, Linda Traitz, Louisa Moritz, Barbara Bowman, Joan Tarshis and Angela Leslie, all of whom, Cosby claims, made “malicious, opportunistic and false and defamatory accusations of sexual misconduct against him,” and “knowingly published false statements and accusations.”
Cosby’s suit is in response to the defamation suit against him, which was filed by his seven victims. Since he lost his bid in Massachusetts to have a federal judge dismiss the women’s suit, he’s decided to countersue. He is also facing a defamation suit brought by Janice Dickinson and gave a deposition in a civil suit filed by Judy Huth.
The seven women Cosby is suing are only a fraction of the more than 50 victims who are now speaking out against the comedian. They all allege sexual assault or misconduct within the last 30 years. Cosby and his legal team fervently deny these allegations, despite the fact that Cosby stated, under oath, that he purchased Quaaludes with the intention of drugging women with whom he wanted to have sex. Yet, we’re expected to believe that he changed his mind and never acted upon this intention.
Judy Huth’s attorney, Gloria Allred, gave a statement to the Huffington Post saying, “Bill Cosby appears to be going to war against women who have sued him in Massachusetts and who allege that he has victimized them. Although I do not represent the women in that case, I do believe that in general that such a tactic will not deter courageous women from fighting the battle against him.”
While I agree with Ms. Allred, the sad truth is that the current legal system is set up to do just that: scare victimized women into silence.
Cosby’s countersuit is the perfect example of how the legal system perpetuates rape culture. According to the website Women Against Violence Against Women, “Rape culture is a term that was coined by feminists in the United States in the 1970’s. It was designed to show the ways in which society blamed victims of sexual assault and normalized male sexual violence.” [Emphasis added.]
The fact that the legal system not only permits, but also encourages this is repugnant.
Who in their right mind would think, “Gee! I’d like to retire early so I’m going to pick a celebrity and claim I was raped. Then all I have to do is watch the money roll in!”
Written out, it seems to be the most preposterous statement possible. However, this is basically the defense the Cosby legal team is using.
I imagine it is possible that someone could think it’s really this easy. This is especially so if they’re not familiar with the U.S. legal system beyond that which they see in some of the popular legal dramas on television. The truth is such claims are not “easy money.” In fact, due to the pervasiveness of rape culture, such claims are an easy way to destroy one’s own reputation. How many people do you know who have said, “Why did they wait so long to come forward? They’re only in it for the money!”? I’ve heard that a lot, sadly.
These women aren’t on the fast track to easy money. They want justice. Thirty years ago, the rape culture was even worse than it is today, believe it or not. Even now, the victims of sexual abuse are vilified, made out to seem as though they were “asking for it.” Coming forward with such claims was and is a terrifying experience. The court of public opinion quite often judges the victims while justifying the acts of the perpetrators.
Honestly, I can’t say for sure that I would have come forward had it been me. Before justice can be done, their abuser’s lawyers will grill these women mercilessly. They will be subjected to embarrassing questions that are designed to make them appear like opportunists. They may even lose family members and friends who may not believe them because they waited to come forward.
This is what our culture does to victims of rape and sexual abuse. Now, with his countersuit, Cosby is using the legal system to victimize them yet again.
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