Mike Lawler, Blackface and Structural Misogyny: Taking it Apart
Opinion Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the author/producer’s interpretation of facts and data.
Mike Lawler’s explanation for wearing blackface in college, in 2006, raises more questions than it answers. Eager to explain away racist overtones, Lawler says he was and is a Michael Jackson “Super Fan.”
The problem? Lawler’s only focus is on the racist implications of his action. But we can’t forget that Jackson was charged with child molestation and two counts of giving a boy, and former cancer patient, an “intoxicating agent” three years earlier in 2003 – and on trial in 2005 on 14 counts. It was international news. Lawler’s unqualified commitment to Jackson speaks volumes about Lawler’s view on the sexual victimization of children (boys, girls and also women). He doesn’t give a damn!
Lawler’s ability to proudly declare himself a super fan of a man facing a litany of pedophilia allegations, forecast his embrace of sexual predator Donald Trump, who declared in the infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape, which came to light in 2016, “I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything…Grab ‘em by the p—-. You can do anything.”
Both Jackson’s and Trump’s individual histories are littered with allegations, settlements, and in Trump’s case, a 2023 guilty verdict for sexually abusing and raping columnist E. Jean Carroll. Yet, despite a barrage of news stories on every conceivable platform, Lawler continues to embrace the victimizer at the expense of the victim. He doesn’t believe children and he doesn’t believe women. And even worse, he doesn’t care.
It is noteworthy that Lawler flew out to attend parts of the Jackson child sexual abuse trial in 2005 and was ejected from the courtroom for making derogatory comments when the alleged victim testified. See a pattern?
Dozens of women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct dating back to the 1970s, including five former Miss Teen USA contestants. Yet Lawler’s commitment to Jackson is the same one he has displayed for Trump since serving as a Trump delegate in 2016, campaigning for him in 2020 and endorsing him again this year.
Lawler’s adoration and allegiance of Jackson and Donald Trump is frightening because of what it says about his world view. Lawler prioritizes men and stardom over the protection of victims of sexual assault, and his total rejection of women’s bodily autonomy is but one byproduct of this mindset.
It is clear: a vote for Lawler is a vote against women and children.
Catherine Lederer-Plaskett
President, WCLA – Choice Matters
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