I’ll be honest when I say that the recent charges brought against Rolf
Harris have ruined a giant chunk of what are often considered our ‘innocent
years’ for me. He was made famous for his likeable TV personality, his
remarkable ability as a painter, his funny and original performances, but now
etched on the brains of thousands he is nothing but a molester. Believe me when
I tell you, I used to rush in from playing outside to watch Animal Hospital
every week; it was a firm favourite in my household. But like so many other
entertainers, Rolf Harris has fallen short and it has been revealed that he abused
that adoration and trust of so many young girls, no different to myself, and
exploited them for his own sexual gratification. Perhaps the most surprising of
all the recent sexual abuse revelations was Rolf himself; this coupled with his
firm denial of all charges and constant support from his wife and daughter, made
it that more bitter to find out he was guilty of all charges.
Down to the nitty gritty so to speak, Harris was charged with five years
and nine months. In reality, he will only likely serve half his sentence, due
to an overwhelming number of mitigating circumstances. Four of his victims were
young children, he used his fame in order to take advantage of their trust, and
perhaps most chilling of all was his repeated abuse of daughter Bindi’s best
friend.
This whole saga throws hundreds of questions into the mix, not just
about Rolf Harris, but about all those famous who have been thrown back into
the spotlight for exploiting their celebrity status for their own seedy needs. What
was it that compelled them to carry out these acts, some of which were so
blatant, and more often than not live on TV? In a number of these cases, it
appears that this was just commonplace, and people expected it of many of those
charged. I’ve read many articles in which a number of people stated that to be
chosen by these men was in fact an honour; it meant you were one of the pretty
girls, that you were in fact lucky. That whole concept absolutely horrifies me.
Was it merely because ‘everyone was doing it’, so Rolf Harris deemed it
acceptable or is there a much darker, more sinister side to him? For many, the
constant denial is a total lack of remorse, so maybe really he is the worst of
all the entertainers.
I think what is most disturbing about all these cases, is the fact that
many are not surprised by these outcomes; it’s almost as if we have accepted
that the 70’s was the decade of the perve. Which leads me to wonder, when I
enter my 40’s and 50’s will I begin to see stories emerge of the great
entertainers of my teens having copped a feel of young girls? Or maybe the
limitless media attention out there these days is too much of a risk, coupled
with the overwhelming number of laws put in place in order to combat these
horrific life-ruining crimes which seem so very present in our news every week.
What is clear to see is that even those most respected of TV personalities are
capable of the most unimaginable crimes, and that the ‘innocent years’ are over
from more than one perspective.
B.A. (Hons) Criminology
To read a previous post about Rolf Harris and the sentencing decisions, click on the link to the right, or click here
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