Torchde Team | August 7, 2020
The Michael Jackson allegations, how does Leaving Neverland really line up with abuse statistics? Learn 8 ways Leaving Neverland got it wrong.
Leaving Neverland, a film that premiered on HBO in the height of the MeToo and Times Up movements, is a two part, 4 hour film starring Wade Robson and James Safechuck. The two men allege abuse at the hands of Michael Jackson since the age of 7 and 10. Immediately following the second night of the premiere Oprah Winfrey hosted a conversation featuring the accusers, alongside the Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed, before an audience of sexual abuse survivors and others impacted by molestation.
In the interview she asserted: “I taped 217 episodes [of “Oprah”] on sexual abuse. I tried and tried and tried to get the message across to people that sexual abuse was not just abuse. It was also sexual seduction,” Winfrey added that Reed was “able to illustrate in these four hours what I tried to explain in 217.”
Before the premiere of Leaving Neverland it was public knowledge that Robson and Safechuck denied wrongdoing under oath, and that they could potentially win millions after changing their stories. Be that as it may, Oprah Winfrey along with others made the argument that Leaving Neverland would still be an informative documentary no matter what the accusers true stories are.
Oprah began with this comment: “If it gets you – our audience to see how it happens (sexual abuse) then some good will come of it.”
What was the overall purpose of Leaving Neverland and did it spread awareness about child sexual abuse as its been credited by Winfrey and numerous media outlets? In order to spread correct information about abuse one must focus on the allegations of Robson and Safechuck as separate units outside of the case scenario that Winfrey’s ‘After Neverland’ show attempted to present.
Aligning the testimony of Robson and Safechuck with sexual abuse statistics in proven cases, here’s 8 ways Leaving Neverland and Oprah Winfrey’s After Neverland got it wrong.
The Sexually Explicit Details
Rape and sexual abuse counselors advise victims to disclose abuse for healing but always remind them that they don’t have to go into detail if they don’t want to. This is the most difficult trauma to describe in detail, and most people never tell their full story even after disclosing. Usually survivors give a surface level definition of what took place with their abuser using words like touching, rape, oral sex, molestation etc. Robson and Safechuck described events on a pornographic level with strong clarity. When adult survivors describe abuse from childhood it’s usually vague, in flashes or bits and pieces.
The Lack of Emotion
Janita Harris, a rape advocate and crisis counselor summarized both accuser’s appearance this way: “Their bodies were very stiff. Their emotional tone was always the same. The way in which they talk about their excitement of meeting Michael Jackson matched the same cadence of when they were talking about sexual abuse. There is no exact specific way that all victims are going to behave, however both of these victims had no emotional expression and their body language was very very controlled. That’s what I would’ve written in a report.”
Location, Location, Location
Robson recalled being molested the first time while his parents were away at the Grand Canyon but his own testimony along with his mothers proves he went with his family on the trip. The way Safechuck remembers it, there was so much ‘sex’, even in Train Stations that weren’t built at the time. It’s uncommon for victims to create memories of trauma in locations where it couldn’t have happened.
Questionable Terminology
Dan Reed told Los Angeles Times : “This is difficult to say, but he (Robson) had a fulfilling sexual and emotional relationship at the age of 7 with a 30-year-old man who happened to be the King of Pop. And because he enjoyed it, he loved Michael, and the sex was pleasant. I’m sorry, that’s just the reality.” This terminology is also used interchangeably in the film and After Neverland, desensitizing the audience to disturbed adult – child interactions. Grooming is replaced with ‘seduction’ or ‘honeymoon’ and the word ‘sex’ was used for ‘molestation’.
Referring to the children as ‘lovers’ instead of ‘victims’ disturbingly adds a romantic element and glamour to abuse.
8 Ways Leaving Neverland Got It Wrong – continued
The Grooming Process
After Neverland paints the picture that everything is ‘Grooming’. There was no real explanation about the difference between normal adult interactions and how a predator would behave at Stage 5 of the process. Winfrey chose to focus on Leaving Neverland’s sexual seduction element and ignore other forms of grooming, such as Verbal Coercion, Use of Drugs/Alcohol, and Threatening/Violence. Part 5 of the 6 Stages of Grooming is when a person commits a series of subtle behaviors and statements over a course of time to desensitize the victim to sexual acts. Both men allege an immediate introduction to sexual acts by Jackson and according to their story they were desensitized up until adulthood.
No CSA Experts in the Film
In an article titled: Why is there so little media skepticism about Leaving Neverland and its allegations against Michael Jackson? The author David Walsh wrote: “Why does the film not include a single appearance by a psychiatrist, an expert on pedophilia or anyone else genuinely qualified to address such issues? The sordid, sensationalized motives are expressed in the structure and overall feel of the film itself. Leaving Neverland is not designed to educate, but to numb, intimidate and pollute.”
8 Ways Leaving Neverland Got It Wrong – continued
Accusers Repetitive Lines
During the After Neverland interview Robson and Safechuck struggled to give answers outside of their dialog in the film. Oprah Winfrey asked exploratory questions through the entire interview. When Robson or Safechuck failed to answer, she would reiterate their answers from the movie. For example, when Robson was asked if he thought Jackson did a bad thing in 2005 he responded after rambling: “Michael was good, that was all that existed in my mind” Oprah interjects: “In your mind you were there to protect him and to save him.” This interchange allowed Robson to insert the same repetitive line about Jackson’s training.
No Warning Signs of Abuse in Childhood
Robson, Safechuck and their families described battles of mental health shown in adulthood. However not one person mentioned any symptoms of abuse when the accusers were children. Even when children are silent about abuse their behavior tells.
Rainn.org reports several behavioral and emotional symptoms as warning signs of child sexual abuse such as:
- Keeping secrets
- Not talking as much as usual
- Not wanting to be left alone with certain people
- Overly compliant behavior
- Sexual behavior that is inappropriate for the child’s age
- Change in mood or personality, such as increased aggression
- Decrease in confidence or self-image
- Excessive worry or fearfulness
- Increase in unexplained health problems such as stomach aches and headaches
Resources: For more information on Child Trauma and Sexual Abuse
visit
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