1, 2, 3... RANT: #FREEKESHA

// so this is a quick rant; expect grammar mistakes and incoherent sentences //

New York Daily News / Getty

I’m sure lots of people online have already heard about the hashtag #FreeKesha; for those of you who are not aware of the hashtag basically Kesha was sexually assaulted (and allegedly raped) by someone in her label called Dr Luke; Dr Luke is a record producer in Sony, her record company. Kesha tried to nullify her contract (as she is obliged to produce six more albums with him) but the judge ruled against her and as of today; 21st of February, 2016, Kesha Rose Sebert is still under contract to release six albums with her assaulter. The court ruling was based on lack of evidence. Now that was a very brief update; for more info you are very welcome to Google the issue and read for yourself the court ruling and all of that.

Okay so as a Law student; I understand what it means for someone to be contractually obliged to certain and specific terms and not be able to nullify said contract. A lot goes into a contract; and there are usually some requirements that would immediately terminate a contract. That’s the long and the short of it; the judge did not find any evidence and so Kesha is still under her contract. Now what would justify as an evidence? We don’t walk around with witnesses 24/7 and cases of sexual assault/abuse don’t just happen publicly. Was the Judge wrong for his ruling? Debateable. Is the System flawed? Yes.

What could replace evidences approved by court? Surely not every accusation could pass without a proof, that’s unfair to the “criminal” in question, but in Kesha’s case, all she wanted was to be free of her contract with her alleged abuser; why couldn’t we refer to a lie detector in this case since the only damage that will be done to the abuser will be related to his contract with an artist and not any “real” monetary or physical damage? Where does equality end and justice begin?

New York Daily News / Getty

This leads me to another point; are we not taking sexual abuse seriously? Kesha’s case certainly got a lot of attention; what’s wrong then? It’s not something we’re not aware of; albeit not all of us are conscious of the extent of damage sexual abuse can cause. I know for a fact a lot of people believe if it’s not rape it’s not technically a sexual assault and it may “only” fall under “harassment”. Why are any of those mildly okay? Is sexual harassment okay because no rape happened? Do people (I avoid using genders when referring to human beings) who are not raped don’t deserve justice? Don’t we all just wish to be comfortable? I’m sorry if a judge is not legally bound to make us feel comfortable in our own environment, I really am, but what role exactly does justice play in our comfort? Does the judge really expect her to be able to produce 6 albums with her abuser? That she will get over it? Why should she? Surely if she should, it would only be for her own sake not the legal system!

So are we supposed to get over it? Is this where my incoherent questions leads this dry and yellow discussion? Are we really meant to just get over any sexual assault (or harassment) of any kind; as long as it’s not rape it’s really not that big of a deal? What if it was going to be rape (and you were very aware of it at the time) but something happened by chance that stopped the action? Is it still not rape? Why? Because no intercourse happened. Because that’s the only time we could claim (often times cowardly) ownership of our bodies. Because even if it was rape not every rape victim is ready to face the consequences. Because even if it was rape it still could be the victim’s fault. Because even if it was rape if you come from an oppressed society you’re still facing the most damages. But it wasn’t rape. It was an alleged assault.

Where are all the feminists who were going crazy about burkas and bitches in rap songs at?