One might wonder if there are people cheering the news that Harvey Weinstein has tested positive for the coronavirus or if people are simply sick of hearing about him now that it’s been established he might be spending the rest of his life in prison, given that he’s not a young man. As Kevin Burwick of MovieWeb states however there’s no comment on whether he’s being kept in isolation to keep him away from other inmates. There’s been plenty in the news concerning Weinstein for the last few years, but much of it has been about as negative as it can get, and for good reason obviously. Given the fact that he’s not going anywhere at this point however, targeting the man for continued vitriol and verbal abuse is a little too easy at this point, and despite the fact that he’s earned his stay in the correctional facility there are more important things going on in the world than his chest pains and whether or not he’s going to see the end of the 20s from a jail cell or even the end of the current year. As of now the COVID-19 virus is making many people feel as though they too are being confined to quarters and aren’t being given much choice on where they can go and what they can do. Thankfully the rest of us have a little more freedom than that since we can go outside, we can go to the store or pharmacy as needed, and most of us aren’t going to hear our name spat like a curse the moment it comes up in conversation.
People are scared at this moment and unfortunately they’re reacting out of fear and uncertainty that’s been brought on by the virus as it’s continued to spread, virtually unchecked, from one part of society to another. Some would call it unfortunate, others might not care, but prisons and correctional facilities are breeding grounds for a virus such as COVID-19 that can offer up a perfect place since there’s little real space between the inmates and many people might even argue that apart from the type of care that is seen as necessary, inmates aren’t the priority when it comes to society. Of course there are plenty of people that would argue this point, that would quote Nelson Mandela when it comes to seeing how a society treats its prisoners is a mark of that nation itself. The exact quote escapes me at the moment, but the conundrum remains. Jennifer Lackey of The Washington Post has more to say on this. Many people would pull for the idea of treating prisoners in a humane and forgiving fashion, and yet many still would question the wisdom of this, citing that the inmates didn’t treat those they wronged with the same humane practices that some are willing to give. The back and forth debate over how inmates are to be treated has been an ongoing one for a while now, and it doesn’t have a conclusive end considering that some believe that inmates shouldn’t be afforded the rights of law-abiding citizens since they took it upon themselves to break said laws and did so with no apparent consideration that they are no better or worse than anyone else.
Those calling for humane treatment however would turn around and cite that many criminals can’t help themselves, that they’re a product of their environment and didn’t have much of a choice when it came to surviving or breaking the law in order to feed their families, take care of themselves, or simply survive. On a very big note, none of this applies to Weinstein, like it or not. An individual can and usually does choose to do what they feel is right for them at any given moment, but rape and sexual assault are actions that very few, if any, within a society deem to be okay. Weinstein is an American, a citizen of a country where rape and sexual assault are not viewed as the norm, and are not celebrated in any way, no matter how much anyone wants to argue that we have a ‘rape culture’ in this nation. Culture, for those that want to continue the argument, is something that many people are proud of and stands as a part of where they came from, what they believe in, and gives them a sense of who they are. In other words, culture carries many positive connotations as it is a part of a person’s identity. Rape and sexual assault are not positive in any sense, and as such stating that a ‘rape culture’ exists in this country is a major fallacy since no one is dumb enough to claim “Hey, I hail from a proud rape culture, everyone should respect that!”. Any individual even bothering to claim this would become a massive target for abuse on a level that’s hard to fathom. Fionola Meredith of The Irish Times can back this up with her own opinion.
So Weinstein has the COVID-19 virus? That’s too bad, for him.
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