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We need to talk about the media’s appalling coverage of R. Kelly and White men who kill
Seriously! We need to talk about how we’ve gotten to the place where deplorable acts of violence against women and children are now being fetishized by the media and the individuals who willingly consume the garbage that really needs to be disposed of without a trace.
When the insightfully devastating Lifetime docu-series Surviving R. Kelly made it’s highly-anticipated debut back in January, the scorching revelations heightened the emotional investments of women like me, who are old enough to recall the decade-long rumors of the disgusting exploits of the embattled R&B singer, who managed to escape the jaws of the law, without any pressure from an industry that tends to put profits from hit singles above all else.
The heated conversation around the renewed ire over how the wellbeing and security of Black women has always been the negotiable tactic that allows for the worst case scenario to play out repeatedly was finally in full bloom, with expectations that this wouldn’t just be the season of “wokeness” that passes when viral attributes fade away.
We all wanted justice to be served in the name of the victims past and present, who were serving their time for reasons that were beyond their control, and regardless of the circumstances that led to…
