Could it be anyone?

[Adelaide]

No one wants to think of someone they love, or anyone they admire and respect, as a monster. But as more and more people come forward with stories of harassment and assault, more and more people are having to reckon with this conflict.

Sarah Silverman was the first to do so publicly. “Can you love someone who did bad things?” she asked in the beginning of her Hulu Show, I Love You, America, in a reference to her longtime friendship with fellow comedian Louis C.K., who confessed last week to masturbating in front of numerous women against their will.

“I hope it’s OK if I am, at once, very angry for the women he wronged and the culture that enabled it, and also sad, because he’s my friend,” Silverman said.

Ever since the Weinstein allegations came out, the public has been quick to label him and others subsequently accused of sexual misconduct as subhuman.

What happens when you like, or even love, a sexual harasser? - Daily Beast

This article got me thinking about this: Could it be anyone, including people that you love/respect who have never shown any signs of abuse or misbehavior towards other people? What would you do if you found out that your spouse or a best friend or a family member had acted inappropriately in the workplace? Do you automatically assume allegations are true, like we are seeing with the many scandals? Do you automatically assume innocence? Do you attack the character of the person making the accusation, or question the character of the person you love being accused?

[Peter1469]

I believe one of the famous serial killers was married and his wife never thought he was the monster that he was.

[jimmyz]

Is there a degree of assault? Witnessing a guy masturbating because you stand there and refuse to stop the act by leaving the room is far from being physically sexually assaulted. Where does the line start or end. Zero tolerance says it is at any point of lewd conduct. I tend to agree.