At least 120 accusers with allegations of sexual assault against Combs have come forward, including a nine year-old boy.
Combs is currently being detained in New York, charged with sex trafficking, racketeering and more. Combs has pleaded not guilty and lawyers maintain he is innocent. So far, these are only allegations, but federal indictments carry weight.
Since the news broke, speculation about Combs’ sex parties, which he called “Freak Offs,” has run rampant. Combs allegedly invited, even lured victims into sex acts, which he often recorded. Combs appears to have spent decades building a list of Hollywood celebrities who attended such parties, using threats and blackmail to guarantee their silence.
Though Combs has never been convicted of a crime, he has a long history of alleged violence going back to the 1990’s.
The Combs allegations are stunning in both their severity and scope. Hundreds of victims going back decades. This raises questions about the #MeToo movement in Hollywood. Sure, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein paid a hefty price for their sex-based crimes, but how did we miss this? Both those men were pals with the same celebrities now whispering to know about Combs.
Now, in hindsight, with videos surfacing of an uncomfortable and young Justin Bieber who knew Diddy and Eminem lyrics smearing him, it seems like some in Hollywood knew all along and perhaps even tried to expose him. Yet whether due to Diddy’s influence, blackmail or loyalty, celebrities who knew details weren’t eager to expose one of their own outright, except for his ex-girlfriend, who came forward.
This is unfortunate because it was the entire crux of MeToo: that powerful men are basking in the limelight, sexually abusing women, exchanging their naivete for sex and position, destroying people’s lives. MeToo seems to have often gone too far when it comes to false allegations, and yet, where it mattered, not far enough.
The Diddy allegations reveal something else for the rest of us, beyond MeToo.
Many of the celebrities who allegedly attended these parties are famous. People we allow into our homes to fill downtime, concerts to delight us and movie theaters to entertain us. America has a thriving entertainment culture and everyone can see it now with the click of a button on their phones.
Sometimes, the ubiquitous nature of Hollywood celebrities makes it seem like they, in fact, do know better. What to wear, what to do, how to spend money, and who to love. After all, they’re rich and famous. We are a culture that idolizes Hollywood with ease. It feels warm and fuzzy to deify gods on screen because it asks little of us but our most precious asset: time.
For decades, Hollywood celebrities have played this up well. They have had no problem telling people who to vote for, what causes to champion, how to spend money and, of course, what art to consume. If you’re ever tempted to take advice or hear a lecture from a Hollywood celebrity again who walked in these particular circles, think twice.
This isn’t to smear celebrities as a whole, but if as many knew what was going on as it seems, that’s a lot of victims who could have been saved from traumatic experiences if they’d had the chutzpah to speak up. Hollywood stars lecture us as if they are our moral betters, whilst wolves --- not even in sheep’s clothing --- like Epstein, Weinstein and now Diddy --- prowl among them. The irony is dumbfounding.
We’ve always known celebrities have their own problems, and especially a raunchy sub culture, but until #MeToo, it was easy to dismiss as just inherent, an unfortunate part of that business. The Diddy allegations take this idea to a whole different level of debauchery. From the sounds of it, Hollywood celebrities weren’t just dancing around in it, they were swimming at an ocean’s depth. Right now, Hollywood seems worse than we ever thought it was.
