Even though it might have felt at least somewhat promising that Harvey Weinstein should “surrender Dorothy” with all the charges and accusations levied him by a literal army of women in the seven months since the climate-altering New York Magazine article by Ronan Farrow came out, his so-called “capitulation” is not without its hollowness. As Weinstein’s lawyer (the type of person who gives the profession the bad name that translates so often to shyster), Benjamin Brafman (white Jewish male in arms), insisted, “Many of these allegations are long overdue, having been made about events alleged to have happened many years ago… I anticipate the women who made these allegations when subjected to cross-examination, in the event that we even get that far, that the charges will not be believed. Assuming we get twelve fair people who have not been consumed by the movement that has overtaken this case.” To add insult to injury to the wrongly named “surrender,” Brafman further attempted to minimize the weight of the gravity of Weinstein’s history by remarking, “Mr. Weinstein did not invent the casting couch in Hollywood and to the extent that there is bad behavior in that industry, that is not what this is about. … Bad behavior is not on trial in this case.” If terrorizing and sexually abusing an entire city (expanding well beyond the confines of Los Angeles) of actresses and ingenues is written off as “bad behavior,” what does Brafman consider “good behavior”–a woman not castrating Weinstein on sight? Because, frankly, that actually would be good behavior–or at least reined in comportment considering the depth and severity of the crimes.
As more and more members of Hollywood come forward to express their sympathy and shame for having been complicit in propagating his depraved appetite via their act of “going along to get along,” it’s become clear that silence truly is violence. And as one of the first women to come forward, Rose McGowan was not shy about expressing her feelings on Friday when Weinstein showed up to make his plea. She stated, “He tied with God for thanks at the Oscars. And to see that constantly, and to live in that town–and to see people lay wreaths at his feet even though they knew, today is a good day… The man who pinned me down had handcuffs on him today.” And, by the way, what the fuck was with Weinstein’s book carrying shtick outside the station–with particular regard to the contrived titles: an Elia Kazan biography and Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution. Is this supposed to invoke pity–your undying love for the cinema–or make us believe you’re gay so you couldn’t have possibly preyed on women?
Then there is the irony of Weinstein “giving himself up” at a police precinct in Tribeca, where The Weinstein Co. offices were located just blocks away. There he was, having gone from power to pussy because of the power of the pussy. That has been the fate of Weinstein (and many other monsters after him, Morgan Freeman and Jeffrey Tambor being some of the latest examples), but his callowness has only augmented in conceding vaguely to the police–for instead of owning up to his actions, Weinstein is delusional enough to maintain that all the vile violations he committed were either not that severe or merely part and parcel of being in the business.
What’s most disgusting, is that he had the gall to smile through the “yielding” to the law, which needn’t be yielded to too heavily when you’ve got a million dollars in cash to post bail.
Brafman, who must get paid quite handsomely to say such disgusting words, added, “Mr. Weinstein has always maintained that he has never engaged in non-consensual sexual behavior with anyone. Nothing about today’s proceedings changes Mr. Weinstein’s position. He has entered a plea of Not Guilty and fully expects to be exonerated. We intend to move very quickly to dismiss these charges. We believe, by the end of the process, Mr. Weinstein will be fully exonerated.” And you know what? He probably will be, and not just literally–for in his mind, he will never comprehend the irrevocable damage he has caused, not just to the women who he assaulted, blacklisted and gaslit, but to the entire movie industry. For it will never be pleasant or enjoyable to watch any film that opens with the now sullied Miramax or Weinstein Co. titles. Especially since, in contrast to the life he has led, many of the films he executive produced found women triumphant against men, or at least not raped by them. If he were to have ever created an honest film, maybe one of them might have included an ending where the man who is a monster is fully exonerated not just because that’s how the system still works for white men, but because the male mind (most notably of Weinstein’s generation) is capable of justifying away virtually anything if there’s an orgasm to be had, or rather, taken.
