R. Kelly was found guilty on all counts in his sex-trafficking trial Monday . For the most part, I don’t think any of us are …
R. Kelly was found guilty on all counts in his sex-trafficking trial Monday. For the most part, I don’t think any of us are shocked at this verdict. Kelly has a long history of sexual abuse and exploitation of women and minors that spans several decades. What is shocking is one of the defense strategies from Kelly’s attorney, Deveraux Cannick. He said Kelly’s accusers stuck around because he spoiled them with free air travel, shopping sprees and fancy dinners. “He gave them a lavish lifestyle,” Cannick said. “That’s not what a predator is supposed to do.” This raises the question: What is a predator supposed to do? Should sex-trafficking predators kidnap victims from parking lots in the middle of the night? Should they keep the victims tied up in basements? Do victims need to be battered and bruised in order for their abuse to be legitimate? For a long time, we’ve only imagined human trafficking to look like the movie ” Taken.” An unsuspecting, innocent victim kidnapped by a violent trafficker and rescued by Liam Neeson, our perfect hero. Yet at Restore NYC, the anti-trafficking organization I co-founded 12 years ago, we know things aren’t as simple.
