Shia LaBeouf Said He Was Raped And The Reactions Are Harsher Than You'd Expect
While past press surrounding the 'Transformers' actor have centered on his bizarre behaviour, reactions to his recent allegation of being raped should really be more than dismissive and disbelieving comments.
By Samantha Khor — 01 Dec 2014, 10:59 AM — Updated almost 10 years ago
In a recent e-mail interview with Dazed Digital, Hollywood actor Shia LaBeouf made a rather shocking revelation - that he was raped during his #IAMSORRY performance art exhibit in Los Angeles last February
#IAMSORRY involved LaBeouf sitting silently behind a desk in a room in LA’s Cohen gallery with a paper bag bearing the legend “I am not famous anymore” over his head. For five days, members of the public queued to be able to sit alone with him in the room with a prop of their choice - things like a "Transformers" toy, a whip (he starred in 2008's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull"), Hershey's kisses, a bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey, a bottle of cologne, pliers, a ukelele and a copy of Daniel Clowes' book, "The Death-Ray".
theguardian.com
LaBeouf alleged that a woman "whipped his legs for ten minutes" before stripping off his clothing and proceeded to rape him - all while hundreds of people were waiting in line for their turn with the actor
LaBeouf wrote, "One woman who came with her boyfriend, who was outside the door when this happened, whipped my legs for ten minutes and then stripped my clothing and proceeded to rape me… There were hundreds of people in line when she walked out with dishevelled hair and smudged lipstick. It was no good, not just for me but her man as well."
News of the woman's behaviour "travelled through the line", and to make matters worse, LaBeouf's girlfriend Mia Goth was also waiting in line to see him
"On top of that my girl was in line to see me, because it was Valentine’s Day and I was living in the gallery for the duration of the event – we were separated for five days, no communication. So it really hurt her as well, as I guess the news of it travelled through the line. When she came in she asked for an explanation, and I couldn’t speak, so we both sat with this unexplained trauma silently. It was painful," he added.
LaBeouf's allegations have largely been met with harsh criticisms of the actor's behaviour as well as dismissive comments, with some attributing it to his troubled mental state and even accusing him of lying to get attention
I think we’re witnessing the beginning of Shia LaBeouf’s mental breakdown. This rape allegation is just plain weird.
— DARTH FUCKING REVAN (@GeorginaGarrity) November 28, 2014
Does Shia LaBeouf not realise that rape is real and traumatic? It's not just something people say in an effort to stay relevant. #fuckwit
— Dean Fletcher (@RealDeanCool) November 28, 2014
Shia LaBeouf has completely lost the plot.
— discobisc (@discobisc) December 1, 2014
Offering his two cents on LaBeouf's claims, British journalist and TV personality Piers Morgan accused the actor of inventing the story for cheap publicity, calling it "truly pathetic" and demeaning to "real rape victims"
Shia LaBeouf's claim to have been 'raped' is truly pathetic & demeans real rape victims. Grow up, you silly little man.
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) November 28, 2014
People are actually defending Shia LaBeouf. The world's gone mad. He's invented a supposed 'rape' for cheap PR - utterly shameful.
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) November 28, 2014
I've no problem with Shia LaBeouf doing dumb things in the name of art. I have a big problem with him crying fake rape to promote himself.
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) November 29, 2014
In response to Morgan's accusations, the two artists who have worked with LaBeouf on the #IAMSORRY project - Luke Turner and Nastja Säde Rönkkö - have seemingly confirmed that the incident did happen on their respective Twitter accounts
Nowhere did we state that people could do whatever they wanted to Shia during #IAMSORRY.
— Luke Turner (@Luke_Turner) November 30, 2014
As soon as we were aware of the incident starting to occur, we put a stop to it and ensured that the woman left.
— Nastja Säde Rönkkö (@NastjaRonkko) November 30, 2014
Even then, Morgan was still sceptical and questioned Turner as to why they did not apprehend the "rapist", to which Turner replied that the woman "ran out" before they could be clear on what had transpired
@piersmorgan It wasn’t clear at the time precisely what had happened, & the 1st priority was to ensure everybody's safety in the gallery…1/2
— Luke Turner (@Luke_Turner) November 30, 2014
@piersmorgan She ran out, rather than simply walking away. Beyond that, it's not my place to comment. 2/2
— Luke Turner (@Luke_Turner) November 30, 2014
Whether or not LaBeouf's allegations are true, these negative reactions highlight a contrasting difference in our society's perception of gendered rape. While female claims of rape are often taken seriously, male claims are often met with dismissal and disbelief.
While America continues to talk predominantly about rape as a women's issue, research shows that women are by no means the only people victimized by sexual violence. We need to treat male claims of female rape with the same level of scrutiny and seriousness as we treat female claims.
shia labeouf was raped and men are calling him pathetic but as soon a female talks about rape y'all wanna jump "men get raped too"
— wally west hanin (@stylesgranger) November 29, 2014
we are reminded that men can be raped too then as soon as shia labeouf claims he was raped everyone calls him pathetic
— lauren sanderson (@laurenthellama) December 1, 2014
On the other hand, as Morgan had pointed out, LaBeouf's rape allegations could merely be a publicity stunt. While the actor should be given the benefit of the doubt, incorporating false claims of rape in any kind of PR stunt or even as part of his "performance art" would certainly belittle the severity of rape culture and its victims.
Rape is not a joke and it's certainly not a PR stunt. Most importantly, false reports perpetuate the debunked idea that large numbers of people "cry rape," doing a huge disservice to real rape victims in the process.
While LaBeouf's bizarre behaviour in the past might have caused some people to judge him as an unreliable source, the authenticity of his claims really shouldn't be dependent on that. As is deserving of any other rape victim, he should be given the opportunity to shed light on his ordeal.
LaBeouf deserves the benefit of the doubt, but a bombshell claim like that deserves clarification, especially given its implications for victims. LaBeouf also may not have reported the incident to police, something that is not uncommon with sexual assault victims. He also has a history of instability and addiction — but again, these facts don't inherently invalidate his claims. Indeed, the impulse to use past histories of emotional issues or substance abuse has long been a tactic of defense attorneys and rape apologists.
