Was Michael Jackson guilty?
Was Michael Jackson guilty?
I remember at the time, lots of people being on the fence and didn't know what to believe.
Where do you land now, after all this time?
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I don't know but the most compelling evidence in my mind is the personal stories from Macaulay Culkin. Culkin was about as broken as Michael Jackson for similar reasons and I think they had a legitimate bond because of that. I tend to believe Culkin when he says that Jackson's odd behaviors were not a result of ill intent and that Jackson didn't hurt children.
The public will never know for sure.
He was a very broken person, in many ways. That doesn't prove or disprove that he did anything illegal or immoral.
Some of the ways he acted? They seem questionable to most folks, myself included. But through the lens of his emotional and psychological issues? They could have appeared harmful but actually been harmless.
For example: Is it weird for an adult celebrity to have pajama parties with kids? Yes. Is it harmful if it was, in fact, only a pajama party? Probably not.
Michael Jackson is a complex figure with huge cultural import. That doesn't change the fact that he may have been a problematic individual.
In some ways, he may have been less harmful than other historic figures. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't question the possible bad things he did.
One thing I keep hearing as a bad thing is that multiple kids have attested to being invited to sleeping in his bedroom.
I just want to point out that his bedroom was the size of a normal middle class house.I'm not weighing in one way or another, I just want to hilight that this anecdote on its own doesn't indicate anything beyond a sleepover.
But yeah, the heart of the matter is that we don't know, and never will know.
I don't know what he did and cannot claim to, but I'll say that if his accusers are right, they have a funny way of showing it.
What's this about?
I assume the accusations of sexual crimes against children.
https://slate.com/culture/2019/03/michael-jackson-leaving-neverland-sexual-abuse-allegations.html
The two cases when he was tried in court for allegedly abusing minors.
I don't really know if he did it or not. So much conflicting information that I'm not sure we'll ever know. There was definitely some confirmed questionable behavior on his part.
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I feel like we'll never know
I have a friend who worked directly with Michael for an extended period of time. Was on a first name basis, spent a number of days with his family hanging out at Neverland Ranch, and all. The pix he shared with me were somewhat amazing. Michael in non-celebrity mode.. made him seem a lot more human. He says that whereas Michael was eccentric and child-like, Michael was innocent of the charges. That’s a good enough endorsement for me.