Read the details of the Jimmy Safechuck claim here
Yet again, we are reveal the sad news that another Jackson victim has come forward. Jimmy Safechuck was Jackson’s constant companion for several years after he starred alongside Jackson in a Pepsi commercial. Safechuck has added his name to the molestation suit filed by Wade Robson and alleges many of the same things. Rather than go into those claims again, I have been looking at the fan reaction to these new claims.
The reaction was puzzling at first – rather than waiting for details to become clear, or to hear the allegations in full, they have immediately launched an attack on yet another potential victim. Sensible people would realise that false child abuse claims are rare, in most studies they range between 0.5% and 5%, so to now have a sixth person to come forward with allegations against Jackson shows that there is indeed merit to them. To recap:
- Terry George reluctantly admitted that Jackson was masturbating during a phone call to then 13 year old George;
- Jordan Chandler told of kissing, mutual masturbation and oral sex between himself and Jackson;
- Jason Francia endured fondling by Jackson under his shorts at Neverland;
- Gavin Arvizo was the victim at the centre of the 2005 molestation trial against Jackson;
- Wade Robson in 2013 revealed abuse commencing when he was seven until age fourteen including kissing, masturbation and sodomy by Jackson;
- Jimmy Safechuck, the latest accuser, has said that Jackson abused him between the ages of ten and fourteen
Jackson fans have vilified, attacked and stalked all six men. Is this how civilized people should treat men who have the courage to come forward with allegations of abuse? Particularly galling is Jackson fans reference to the spurious argument that these men are only after money. No amount of money is worth disclosing for when there is a huge amount of shame and embarrassment, not to mention the advantage of an automatic assumption of innocence against the perpetrator due to the Halo Effect, involved in coming forward. Jackson fans would also presumably be against victims of Catholic priests, notorious UK pedophile Jimmy Savile or sick US pedophile Jerry Sandusky receiving compensation for the horror abuse they suffered from those men. The “they just want money” argument just isn’t going to fly.
‘He is not doing this for the money, that’s not what this is about.’ – wife of James Safechuck Jr, 15th May 2014
However, when you reflect upon fan behaviour against Jackson’s victims, you come to realise that they are taking cues from Jackson himself. Jackson, the master of deceit and manipulation, was only ever interested in saving his own skin and attempting to preserve his own reputation. Jackson never truly cared about children, as his habit of putting children in ambiguous situations shows. His compulsive need to spend time alone with young boys now has grown men who are looked upon as suspected of being abused purely due to Jackson’s actions (and you must concede this whether you believe Jackson to be innocent or guilty of the accusations). Jackson is the one at fault here.
Jackson never apologized for his actions towards children, even when it was shown that his behaviour was damaging to them. After the first damning Chandler case, Jackson continued his habit of taking young boys to bed against all advice from those close to him. To fans, their explanation is that he shouldn’t have stopped because he “didn’t think he was doing anything wrong” – a hollow argument indeed which can be shown by applying it to any other activity that goes against society’s moral code, such as behaving unethically in business or being racist.
How did Jackson react against those who made allegations against him? In the Chandler case, he hired the convicted thug Anthony Pellicano to tap the Chandler’s phones, to intimidate the Chandlers and anyone close to them, and accused them of extortion (a claim cleared by the police after investigation); in the Arviso case he once again hired shady private investigators to intimidate, stalk and harass the Arvizos, and once again, through his lawyer Tom Mesereau, to accuse them of merely making claims to extort money from Jackson (even when there is absolutely no evidence of that, then or since); in the case of the Francias Jackson, through others, threatened the mother with violence if she went public. Never once did Jackson admit any wrongdoing – in all cases he attacked the alleged victims ruthlessly and without mercy, calling them liars, money grubbers and attempting to vilify them. Fans followed his lead, and Jackson could have asked them to behave appropriately towards the alleged victims yet never did. Instead he subtly encouraged them by playing the victim himself.
Thus we see the seeds of why fans react the way they do. Like Jackson, they are of the view that a celebrity is more important than children or their rights. They believe the Jacksons money making image should not be compromized. Jackson fans believe every child molestation claim against Jackson is about money, not obtaining justice. They believe Jackson’s victims (and every child Jackson took a liking to was a victim because of the situations he put them in) are fair game to abuse, stalk and harass. Jackson’s influence looms large, and it’s not pretty. Hate for victims is accepted in the fan community because of Jackson’s lead. Looking in from the outside it is ugly and sad, yet fans will never see it that way – to them, Jackson’s reputation is more important than justice for abuse victims.
How many more victims will need to come forward before Jackson fans realise he was a pedophile? Surely now, with a sixth accuser coming forward, they can admit they have been wrong about Jackson and it’s time to side with victims? When will fans finally see the truth about Jackson? Probably never. In order to see the light, they will need to open their eyes.