A federal civil rights lawsuit filed this week claims that severely intellectually and physically disabled patients at a state-operated home in Iowa were used as “guinea pigs” in sexual arousal research experiments. Read the rest
In 2019 the Pennsylvania Attorney General published a 900-page grand jury report on sexual predators in the Catholic Church and the coverups the church and its official had undertaken; at the time, the church promised to end the coverup and engage in truth and reconciliation with the parishoners who'd been preyed upon by clergy. Read the rest
“I still can't talk about what happened to me because of a non-disclosure agreement,” says Gretchen Carlson. Read the rest
UPDATE: Here is an email I received from Tony Robbins' representative moments after I published this blog post about the Buzzfeed News story. I have appended Mr. Robbins' full statement, and that of his representative Jennifer Connelly, below. -- Xeni Jardin
Connelly, Jennifer 11:23 AMDear Xeni,
I represent Mr. Robbins and just saw your story which repeats the false story that BuzzFeed just published. While we appreciate you linking to Mr. Robbins’ Medium article, we respectfully ask that you also include my full media statement, or at the very least link to it.
I have to say I am confused as to why you would republish fake and false news before even reaching out to us for comment? Don’t we deserve the opportunity to comment before you just run with tabloid false news?
This is not ethical journalism and I respectfully request a response from you and your editor. Your headline does not reflect the truth and that is offensive and not credible journalism.
We respectfully request that you run my statement below in full.
Please confirm.
Thank you
Original blog post follows.
Motivational speaker Tony Robbins is accused of sexually assaulting a high schooler at a summer camp, report Buzzfeed's Katie Baker and Jane Bradley in an extensively investigated story just out today. Read the rest
On Tuesday, McDonald’s Corporation was sued by a group of workers in the state of Michigan who say the global fast-food chain allows pervasive sexual harassment to run rampant at its restaurant locations. Read the rest
A mom in Brazil became concerned as she watched the viewing numbers on innocent backyard clip her daughter posted to YouTube suddenly climb hundreds of thousands of views. The child posted a video of herself and a friend playing in the family pool. YouTube's recommendation engine had been suggesting the video as recommended content to viewers who'd just watched other videos that contained sexually oriented video content. YouTube's AI sexualized her kid and pushed her image to pedophiles. This happens a lot, apparently. Read the rest
New leaders of FLDS polygamy cult known for ritualized child rape have reportedly purchased property and started building in Northern Minnesota. Known polygamist and convicted felon Seth Jeffs, brother of convicted pedophile Warren Jeffs who's serving life plus 20 for child sexual assault, obtained permit to build a 6,000-sq ft compound. Construction equipment has arrived.
SETH STEED JEFFS is “a known polygamist, a convicted felon and a member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS).”
One of Seth's brothers is Warren Jeffs, the convicted pedophile and former FLDS boss who is in prison.
Seth Jeffs is currently being sued over claims he participated in that same ritual sex abuse orchestrated by Warren Jeffs in the FLDS. Seth is reported to be in hiding from the child rape lawsuit, and has faced related legal troubles around a food stamp abuse scheme the authorities say funded the FLDS.
In 2011 Warren was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault, for which he is currently serving a prison sentence of life plus 20 years.
After Warren went to prison, media attention mostly faded. People still live in the communities along the Utah-Arizona border where men like Warren and Seth were once kings. The Utah town of Hildale has a female mayor now, who grew up in the FLDS. She's amazing, and her name is Donia Jessop. Those former FLDS temple buildings in the Utah and Arizona border towns of Hildale and Colorado City no longer host FLDS worship services, and most of the faithful moved on to colonies elsewhere. Read the rest
Alphabet and Google co-founder Larry Page did not ask his company's board of directors for approval before personally approving a $150 million dollar stock grant to disgraced Android executive Andy Rubin, despite the sexual harassment allegations that led to Rubin's ouster. These are the claims in an investor lawsuit, which says the company covered up the sexual misconduct of Rubin and others. Read the rest
Today is R. Kelly's birthday. Today, news is breaking that the singer is under investigation in Georgia.
R. Kelly has been accused of abuse, predatory behavior, and pedophilia for decades. A new investigation has launched into charges he committed crimes against girls in Fulton County. Dream Hampton, executive producer of 'Surviving R. Kelly,' said it best. Read the rest
“Oh no! For the first time since 1981 there will be no Woody Allen this year,” lulzed Joe Berkowitz, speaking for me also, and everyone who's grossed out by Woody Allen.
“NOW how will we get our required annual dosage of shrewish women complicating a nervous man's life?” Read the rest
A German 48-year old citizen and her 39-year old partner have been sentenced to 12 years in prison after being found guilty of repeatedly raping her son. If that’s not enough, the filth also sold the boy to pedophiles she found on the Dark Net, who further abused the child and filmed it, over a two-year period. It goes without saying that Germany, and most anyone else that’s heard about it, has been horrified by the case.
From The Guardian:
In Tuesday’s verdict, the couple was ordered to pay €42,500 (£38,000) in compensation to the boy and another victim, a young girl.
Local authorities have been accused of failing to protect the boy, who now lives with a foster family. The mother’s partner was supposed to be banned from having contact with children. Officials removed the boy from the family in March last year, but a local court sent him back weeks later.
According to The Telegraph, six others were jailed for their involvement in the sexual abuse of the boy. Because of the way that Germany handles criminal cases that involve rape, none of the parties responsible can be named by the media.
I can’t even begin to imagine the life-long harm that’s been done to those kids in the name of self-fulfillment and greed, nor can I understand the how a system designed to protect society’s most vulnerable failed them them so completely.
Image via Flickr, courtesy of Blogtrepreneur Read the rest
ProPublica's Michael Grabell and Topher Sanders obtained police reports and call logs from more than 70 of the 100 shelters housing immigrant children.
What the documents reveal: “If you're a predator, it's a gold mine.” Read the rest
A 6-year old girl separated from her mom under Trump's "zero tolerance" policy was sexually abused inside a Southwest Key shelter in Arizona, reports The Nation. Read the rest
"Larry, you do now realize that we, this group of women you so heartlessly abused over such a long period of time are now a force, and you are nothing." Read the rest
The Reckoning [vox.com] examines 105 of the powerful people (all but two of them men) who have been accused of sexual misconduct in 2017. Abusers in media and journalism are relatively widely-exposed, whereas those in other fields seem relatively few in number, at least as Vox counts it. In particular, badly-behaved politicians get headlines, but the list is surprisingly short.
Read the restMore and more people have come forward publicly in recent months with stories like these, of high-ranking men who abuse their power to sexually harass and intimidate others. This kind of abuse is far from new, but in 2017, more and more of these men actually started facing consequences.
