[Gráinne]

Originally Posted by CherylNYC

Banning? I think that's a good way to approach the work of an active perpetrator such as R Kelly. There are other approaches that work for me. Right now my personal policy is refusing to support, and opting for compassion for survivors. For instance, I have adamantly refused to spend another cent on anything that might provide Woody Allen with profit. The daughter he abused is a living person who is injured each time her abuser is held up for praise.

I'm an enormous fan of the work of Rodin. When his artistic and romantic partner, Camille Claudel, balked at her erasure and lack of credit for her contributions to their collaborative pieces, he had her committed to an insane asylum. Rodin was in strong company. Rembrandt had his housekeeper committed to an insane asylum when she sued him in court for breach of contract after he refused to marry her. They had become lovers after the death of Rembrandt's beloved Saskia. Yes, I continue to enjoy the art of those two men, but I never view their work without acknowledging just how craven those men were. Could I enjoy their work if either woman were still alive? Probably not.

Jackson's many victims are very much alive. I can't imagine how painful it is for each of them to hear his work played on the radio. Without warning, many times a day, each of those people might be forced to hear the music, or see the image, of their abuser. Anywhere, anytime. Who knows besides the abused men which songs or images might trigger them? It must be excruciating for many. I choose not to torment survivors of abuse.

I occasionally work with a man who was sexually assaulted by that dumb f*ck, Kevin Spacey. I'm a survivor myself, so I had already recognized his haunted, hunted look before he ever told me about what happened to him when he was a teenager. I no longer have that look myself. Time has been an ally for me. But my co-worker is clearly sent into a terrible place when his abuser is mentioned. Compassion for survivors should be part of our process whenever we discuss how to handle the art of abusers.

But who gets to decide for everyone else what is banned? If a statue triggers someone, should it be pulled down even if the person's descendants objects? Who would decide for me what I can't see, watch or read?

I too am a survivor. But I don't want to live in a sterile world free of triggers. I don't want compassion. I want the whole world of art, as messy and controversial as it is.