Originally published on Unwritten by Rachel Connell.
It always baffles me how stories of celebrity breakups, nose jobs, and copyright infractions wind up 'important' enough to fill my trending feed on Twitter. But this week, my emotions were struck in a whole new way.
You may have been questioning why electro-pop sensation Ke$ha or by her birth name Kesha Rose Serbert, hasn't made new music. Many of us may have misjudged her reputation as a fun-loving party girl, assuming she must just be another celebrity on the fly from a one-hit-wonder. Although, the reality is much further from this.
Ke$ha's music career has been put at a standstill since her release with Pitbull's "Timber" in 2013, after filing a lawsuit against her producer Lukasz Gottwald or Dr. Luke in October of 2014. Kesha has revealed facing sexual abuse, drugged rape, battery, gender violence, emotional abuse, the violation of business practices, and a far too lengthy list of verbs, terms, and crimes that no human being should ever fall victim to. This all began for her at the young age of 18, at the start of an exciting music career, by fault of a producer she knew, trusted, and believed held her career in his palm. After being abused for over a decade, her story has filled the spotlight with a crucially important message.
Assault extends further than the vulnerable average teenage girl at the back of the bar. Assault can happen anywhere, and does happen everywhere.
EVEN IN THE BRIGHTEST OF SPOTLIGHTS, THERE ARE CORNERS OF DARKNESS.
The current legal battle says much more to the subject than merely disallowing Ke$ha to produce music against her contract. It speaks to the victim-blaming response that Ke$ha has faced while Sony Music and Gottwald have been using the legal system to hold her accountable for coming forth about her abuses. The cycle of rape-culture endorsement is upheld by the legal excuse she signed a contract. I can confidently convey that Kesha Serbert signed no contract of any sort, agreeing to the violation of her body, emotions, and wellbeing. Her art has been wrongfully placed on hold, and her power, ability and freedom to work, refused.
Sony claims to defend their trail by writing, "Serbert cannot have it both ways. She cannot claim that Gottwald intimidated her into silence, then - as an apparent afterthought - seek to hold Sony and Kemosable Records liable for failing to act on conduct that she did not report." This passage sounds far too familiar to the common rape misconception of "She was asking for it."
No person, EVER, asks for it.
Sony has had no trouble commercializing Ke$ha as a product in the public eye to listen to, enjoy, and look up to for confidence, beauty, and a good time. Behind the scenes, it is evident they have disregarded the pure acknowledgement that assault, of any kind, is wrong. There is no excuse, and it is absolutely time to be held accountable.
Holding Ke$ha in the public eye at blame for breaching legal terms within her contract supports our sickening rape culture undeniably. Why is the attention drawn away from the abuse this man has committed on a woman? The abuser should be held criminally guilty in the spotlight, not the victim.
For many victims, revealing what they have gone through is harder than any of us can understand and an estimated record shaking 68% of sexual assaults in America are not reported to police. This goes hand in hand with the 98% of rapists who will never spend a day in jail or prison. It should not matter your celebrity status, bank statement, or quality of life. These statistics need to change.
Every 107 seconds, another American is sexually assaulted. Think deeply about the time you've spent reading this article, and let the chills crawling up your spine be the reminder for you to be the change. Awareness, support efforts, accountability, and public action can be in your hands. Use your voice not only in the name of #FreedomForKesha, but #FreedomForAll.