“Does Child Sexual Abuse Mean Anything to Most Black People?”

Child rape, child molestation, and child sexual abuse...However you want to say it is REAL. It happens in a lot of families. It happens to children of all racial and ethnic backgrounds. As a matter of fact, according to the website,www. childhelp.org, “Every year 3.3 million reports of child abuse are made in the United States involving 6 million children; that’s because reports can include multiple children.” However, it seems that this issue is one that is most often swept under the rug in this country. The victim is often vilified by family members, members of their immediate community and even people in society that don’t even know them personally when he or she finally breaks the silence about abuse that has happened to them.

I am bringing this up because in the Black community, many of us seem to either bury our heads in the sand or outwardly attack the victim of child rape or sexual abuse when the person being accused is a celebrity we like. Yeah. I know. We are not the only ones who react this way. Celebrity and Jewish film director, Woody Allen, is a child rapist who was protected and forgiven by the white and Jewish community when ex-wife Mia Farrow broke her silence about him molesting their then adopted underage Asian daughter Soon Ye some years back. This sicko even went so far as to mary his child victim when she became of legal age. Next, there was French director, Roman Polanski. He allegedly drugged and raped an under aged teen girl at his home back in the 1970’s. When the silence was broken and his ass was about to face rape charges that would have sent him to jail for a long time, he fled the country. While in exile, he still received Oscar awards from the white film academy for directing.

In the Black community, many of us gave R. Kelly a major pass after he raped and pissed on a 13 year old black girl on a home produced video/movie because we like the way he sings and we enjoy the booty-shaking music he produces. During the R. Kelly trial and even after his very suspicious and questionable aquittal, Black people even went so far as to declare war on anyone, including the underage girl for pointing a verbal or physical finger of guilt and shame at the RnB singing child rapist. Now, for the past couple of years or so, former member of the RnB singing and dance group B2K, Raz B. has been breaking his silence on the sexual abuse he and fellow members of his old group were force to endure when they were little dudes in the group back in the day. He named his child rapist, Chris Stokes, and also pointed out a few other people who either went along in silence with what was going on or who actually participated in the raping and molesting of him as well as other former group members.

He is the only one speaking out. The other former B2K members members have chosen to keep quiet.  It has been reported in the news recently that RazB is coming out with a tell-all book and he is allegedly naming names of those who are gay in the industry, but hiding. Now, here is the deal. Raz B. may or may not be telling the truth about what happened to him. I am inclined to believe him. The music industry has always been reported as being a haven for sexual misconduct and sexual manipulation of artists by executives. Instead of giving Raz B the benefit of the doubt, many in the Black community have chosen to bury either their heads in the sand or outwardly attack him for stepping forward and breaking the silence with hopes of breaking the cycle of sexual abuse in the music industry. What is it? Why won’t WE stand with the victims when this happens? Why don’t many of us offer support and refuse when a child is raped by a celebrity? Are many of so star struck and have this hunger for fame and riches ourselves that we view people like Raz B. and the young lady in R. Kelly video as possible dream killers?

It leads one to believe that if we are so quick to jump and attack the victim when he or she accuses a celebrity or a rich person of being a child sexual predator, many in the Black community have even ignored the cries of child victims of sexual abuse in our very own households. We have really got to do better.