No one's talking about Steubenville?

Shit I guess we're back to just don't trust anyone. Damn I really wonder why women even deal with men. This shit is disgusting.

 

It was disgusting indeed.

They had the nickname 'the rape crew' so it wasnt the first time they did this sort of thing. If in recall correctly, I think there is another woman who went through the same thing w them but didn't want to be identified or get involved, but I can be wrong.

 

It was a set-up question, with the expectation that Serena would say something stupid. Mission accomplished.

 

Or, perhaps because these men were initially protected by higher-ups because they were popular FOOTBALL PLAYERS (aka sports), R.S might have thought she had an opinion on that. That perhaps she would be speak out for the victim as a woman herself. I somehow doubt the reporter expected ALL THAT particular verbiage, @setup.

 

It still begs the question why ask Serena a question about Steubenville after she just won the French Open?? What's the connection??

Just seems like it's something completely random and any answer she gave would have been seen as controversial.
It's unusual for athletes to be interviewed about questions not directly related to sports, or an incident specific to their own lives.

It's not that a reporter expected Serena to head off into a ditch with her answer, but sometimes they ask unrelated questions to see what someone might say unprompted.

BTW that's the LAST interview that reporter will ever be granted with Ms. Williams.lol

 

Cosign. Especially since it happened so long ago. How is it currently relevant?

 

One thing I know about Rolling Stone as an avid reader/collector over the years is they don't do interviews and just run them that week. She just won The Open last week, so suffice to say this was done quite a bitty before that.

Another thing they are not is a sports mag, so they're looking for a different angle/side of her. My guess is the case that was National headlines was the current topic? The reporter probably isn't looking for another interview anytime soon.

Either way, she spoke her mind, got blasted, but has since retracted, from what I saw.

 

Ok, here is the interview part....and how it transpired:

"....We watch the news for a while, and the infamous Steubenville rape case flashes on the TV – two high school football players raped a drunk 16-year-old, while other students watched and texted details of the crime. Serena just shakes her head. "Do you think it was fair, what they got? They did something stupid, but I don't know. I'm not blaming the girl, but if you're a 16-year-old and you're drunk like that, your parents should teach you: Don't take drinks from other people. She's 16, why was she that drunk where she doesn't remember? It could have been much worse. She's lucky. Obviously, I don't know, maybe she wasn't a virgin, but she shouldn't have put herself in that position, unless they slipped her something, then that's different."

Serena's Hannity-like take on the case isn't her only rightward lean. She is baffled by the tax rate in France. "Seventy-five percent doesn't seem legal. Nobody does anything because the government pays you to be broke. So why work?"


**************

(Also...)

Agree or disagree, Serena's no-*safety-net political philosophy is rooted in her Compton childhood, one where there wasn't a lot of money and where gun violence claimed her older sister Yetunde in 2003.
Today, Serena mother-hens every expenditure. "I'm an athlete and I'm black, and a lot of black athletes go broke. I do not want to become a statistic, so maybe I overcompensate. But I'm paranoid. Oprah told me a long time ago, 'You sign every check. Never let anyone sign any checks.'?"


Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/serena-williams-the-great-one-20130618#ixzz2WhlsAJ3c

(plus I found a plausable date....and theory why she felt comfortable (?) to express her view)...

 

Her retraction/apology

Today, in a statement released through her agent, the number one tennis champ retracted her comments, claiming that she did not intend to blame the victim. Good move, if she is sincere...

"I am currently reaching out to the girl's family to let her know that I am deeply sorry for what was written in the Rolling Stone article.

What was written - what I supposedly said - is insensitive and hurtful, and I by no means would say or insinuate that she was at all to blame.

For someone to be raped, and at only 16, is such a horrible tragedy! For both families involved - that of the rape victim and of the accused.

I have fought all of my career for women's equality, women's equal rights, respect in their fields - anything I could do to support women I have done. My prayers and support always goes out to the rape victim. In this case, most especially, to an innocent sixteen year old child."

 

Thanks for the context Bliss.
Serena was tripping.:twisted:

 

We wonder that too. The only thing I can come up with is that we keep running out of batteries.

 

YW, mate.

On a side note: the French are taxed at 75%??! :smt103

I love this country! :lol:

 

Why anyone, especially female would associate with a group known as 'the rape crew' is beyond me. That's like a couple of brothers hanging around the KKK.

 

Agreed. There's really no other reason.

I don't buy it. It's something that, as a woman, she should have known better than to say anything as ridiculous as what she said. To claim that she meant no harm is just her trying to cover her ass.

I'm tired of these celebrities with diarrhea of the mouth only apologizing when there's outrage.

Why don't they try to think before they speak and either decline to comment or say something like: I'm not privy to the case and the people involved so I won't answer that question.

How hard is that??

 

More reasons to distrust the media and to realize you can't believe everything they say.

It should have been clearly stated when the question was asked.

 

I wish she stuck to her guns. What she said wasn't really that bad and if it is what happened to free speech. Is she not allowed to voice an opinion? Or can't it be a simple "oh my mistake" why is this shit news therefore are far more important things going on. Enough with the distractions.

 

Both of your statements allude to her being asked. She was not solicited for comment. The case came over her TV, and she volunteered her opinion.

Any good reporter would hush, listen and take notes. I don't fault the media here. (a rare occasion, lol)

 

Gotcha. I didn't realize that.

 

Agreed until the 'there are far more important things...Enough with the distractions'

To a woman, it can be very important. There is a rape every 2 minutes in this country. Hardly a distraction, but very distracting numbers.

Serena has 4 million Twitter followers, R.S has 2 million readers. To millions of Tennis fans worldwide, she is #1 seed/Champ. So her words do carry some impact.

If that isn't important enough, think of our Military, who are actually being distracted...by raping or being raped. Stats translate into almost 3 rapes every hour, all day long, all night long, every 24 hours.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...y-can-three-rapes-every-hour-in-the-military/

Our soldiers are protecting us. So it IS important.

 

To me her opinion on this is moot. It wont make those who care about the topic care less nor will the public outing make others care more. The topic of rape is important but her opinion to me isn't. It wont sway things one way or the other. But I hear you.