Cheers for Kobe Bryant's Oscar win were a jarring twist in the MeToo era
A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of participating in a Time’s Up discussion with women from various industries. We shared personal experiences of sexual harassment and abuse and, upon leaving the discussion, I felt a sense of hope that women’s voices were finally being heard and that abuse will no longer be tolerated.
Then Kobe Bryant won an Oscar.
I haven’t seen Bryant’s animated short, Dear Basketball, so I cannot attest to its artistic merit – although it could be The Godfather and my dismay would still stand. But I do know that the hope I felt in the weeks prior suddenly dissipated.
In June 2003 a 19-year-old hotel employee accused Bryant of raping her in his Colorado hotel room – her blood was on her underwear and the NBA star’s t-shirt. The case never made it to trial as the accuser, who had been put through the wringer by media and Bryant’s defense team, made the decision to not testify. Instead, the woman asked that Bryant issue an apology and she filed a separate civil suit, which Bryant settled with the terms kept private.
In Bryant’s apology he said, “Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did. After months of reviewing discovery, listening to her attorney, and even her testimony in person, I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter.”
Then Kobe Bryant won an Oscar.
I haven’t seen Bryant’s animated short, Dear Basketball, so I cannot attest to its artistic merit – although it could be The Godfather and my dismay would still stand. But I do know that the hope I felt in the weeks prior suddenly dissipated.
In June 2003 a 19-year-old hotel employee accused Bryant of raping her in his Colorado hotel room – her blood was on her underwear and the NBA star’s t-shirt. The case never made it to trial as the accuser, who had been put through the wringer by media and Bryant’s defense team, made the decision to not testify. Instead, the woman asked that Bryant issue an apology and she filed a separate civil suit, which Bryant settled with the terms kept private.
In Bryant’s apology he said, “Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did. After months of reviewing discovery, listening to her attorney, and even her testimony in person, I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter.”
Source:
theguardian
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