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R. Kelly is Exposed... Again... And You're Surprised?

In other news... water is wet.

By Jennifer TerryPublished 7 years ago 3 min read
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Yesterday, Buzzfeed published a scathing new article. The subject? America's number one pervert, just edging out Bill Cosby, R&B singer R. Kelly. The piece claims that Kelly runs an abusive "cult," made up of young, barely legal girls, at his compounds in Atlanta and Chicago. The girls are under Kelly's complete control and have to ask his permission before they do anything, even use the restroom. Whenever they disobey, they are "punished" by Kelly, either verbally or physically. They are trained by a house mother, who at the ripe old age of 31, is the oldest of the group. Kelly is 50. Several of the girls' parents say they haven't seen or heard from their daughters in a year or more.

He went public with one of his "relationships" last year at an Atlanta party, with 19-year-old aspiring singer Hallie Calhoun, to the utter disgust of many present.

I was sickened and saddened by the allegations, but not at all surprised. Why? The public has known that Kelly has had an unnatural predilection for young girls since 1994, when he married fellow artist Aaliyah, only 15 years old at the time. He was 27. The marriage was later annulled.

In 1996, a Chicago woman, Tiffany Hawkins, sued Kelly, claiming that he had a sexual relationship with her that began in 1991, when she was also 15, ending when she was 18. It was settled out of court. The lawsuit claimed that even back then, Kelly had a cult of young girl followers, including Hawkins, with whom he was sexually involved.

And there's the videotape. You know the one I mean.

In recent years, Kelly has seemed to wise up a bit when it comes to evading the law. All the women living with him now are technically of age. The age of consent in Georgia is 16. The youngest woman living with him now is 17. The police can do nothing unless the women want to leave. They are legal adults. They claim they are fine and want to stay. Their parents say they are brainwashed.

Why were so many people surprised by this news, with R. Kelly's history of perversion that spans over two decades? Why would people choose catchy songs over the lives and safety of young women and girls? Why would the parents of these girls turn their daughters over to a monster? Kelly has likely been emboldened over the years by the fact that people continued to buy his albums and buy tickets to his shows, that parents still entrust him with their children, while journalists conducted softball interviews with him, despite the allegations and whispers hanging over his head for the past 23 years.

Why doesn't the victimization of black women and girls matter? How could this go on right under all of our noses for years? Even the parent of one of these girls stated that she didn't think there was any truth to Kelly's previous allegations until it happened to her daughter. Why do sexual assault survivors, in general, have to jump through so many hoops to be believed?

I applaud journalist Jim DeRogatis, the author of the Buzzfeed piece, who has doggedly covered Kelly since the early 2000's. I truly believe that because of him, some of these women may be saved. Time will tell. People are finally talking about this again.

But what about Lady Gaga, who collaborated with Kelly in 2013, then turned around and released the hauntingly beautiful "Till It Happens to You," on the soundtrack for The Hunting Ground, a documentary about campus rape?Why did those victims matter to her but not Kelly's? Why were they not worthy in her eyes?

What about all the men I see all over social media now, calling these women liars, despite the overwhelming evidence? What about the woman with whom I interacted on social media, who lamented not being able to see Kelly in concert before this article came out? I pointed out to her that this information is hardly new, and listed some of the previous allegations against him. Her response—everyone deserves a second chance, and she viewed the relationship between Kelly and Aaliyah as "consensual," despite their age difference. Mind-boggling.

Anyone who claimed ignorance before can no longer claim it now. Whether or not they support Kelly going forward will determine their character.

celebritiespop culture
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About the Creator

Jennifer Terry

Wife, author, blogger, animal lover, aggressively nerdy. I live in the Atlanta, GA area with my husband and sweet rescue pup, Quinn.

https://twitter.com/terry_jenn

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