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Angela Lansbury Checks In on Sexual Harassment, and Many Are Not Happy With What She Said

Nov 28, 2017  •  Post A Comment

Legendary actress Angela Lansbury — a three-time Oscar nominee and a television fixture with a stunning 264 episodes of “Murder, She Wrote” under her belt — ruffled some feathers with her recent comments about Hollywood’s sexual harassment scandal.

“There are two sides to this coin,” the 18-time Emmy nominee said in an interview with Radio Times. “We have to own up to the fact that women, since time immemorial, have gone out of their way to make themselves attractive. And unfortunately it has backfired on us — and this is where we are today.”

She added: “We must sometimes take blame, women. I really do think that. Although it’s awful to say we can’t make ourselves look as attractive as possible without being knocked down and raped.”

Lansbury, 92, also said: “Should women be prepared for this? No, they shouldn’t have to be. There’s no excuse for that. And I think it will stop now — it will have to. I think a lot of men must be very worried at this point.”

Lansbury’s comments drew sharp criticism. The U.K. publication The Telegraph quotes a statement from Rape Crisis England & Wales in response to Lansbury’s remarks in which the organization said:

“It is a deeply unhelpful myth that rape and other forms of sexual violence are caused or ‘provoked’ by women’s sexuality or ‘attractiveness.’

“Rape is an act of sexual violence, power and control that has little to nothing to do with sexual desire. It is as insulting to men as it is to anyone to suggest they’re unable to take responsibility for their own behaviours and that the way a woman presents herself can cause them to lose control or force them to sexually harass or assault her.

“There is no excuse or mitigation for sexual violence and there is no circumstance in which it’s even partially the victim’s or survivor’s fault. Until we accept and acknowledge that, it will be very difficult for us as a society to reduce or prevent rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment or sexual abuse.”

8 Comments

  1. This is the type of thinking that has allowed this kind of activity to continue for decades. Women accepting that men will do these things because “we are encouraging it with our dress”. See the pictures in the news of the women that have been raped in the police reports. These women are rarely dressed to attract anyone They are in sweats running in parks or on trails; in their homes with no makeup or “sexy” outfits; walking back from a quick trip to the corner grocery. Not the pretty girls you see raped in a CSI episode. This nonsense is why a group of women turned on their peers to endorse and forgive a proven, admitted harasser, Al Franken, and why these Congressmen from both parties continue to get a pass. Until all men who have admitted to this are forced to pay a price, and not just say they are “embarrassed”, it will not end. Most of them are not embarrassed for what they did, only that they were dumb enough to get caught.

  2. As usual, spot on Cleric. Franken isn’t “sorry” for anything. He’s eager to “get back to work” so that people will get on with their busy lives and eventually forget about the whole tawdry episode. He knows a senate ethics committee investigation will lead to nothing more damaging than a slap on the wrist. People need to keep the pressure on to get a predator like him out of public offiice. I can’t believe there are still people (smart people like Angela Lansbury) who still think dressing a certain way is any way is a causation of the act of rape.

  3. Senile old bitch

  4. Okay, I’ll act as flame bait. Women don’t like to be whistled at, women don’t like to be stared at, (my eyes are up here), I think I’ll cut these pants off so short that you can see my pubic hair, I think I’ll wear this blouse with no bra so that you can see everything I own! I’m so done with women dressing and making comments and egging people (men) on and then not owning up to what they did. Go ahead flame away, I’m 69 years old, a combat vet, I can take pretty much anything.

    • Thank you for your service. One thing — you apparently haven’t been paying attention, because women don’t HAVE pubic hair anymore. Look into it!

  5. See that’s the problem men face. The Casting Couch has existed since the entertainment business became the entertainment business. There was a story where an agent promised a woman a part in a movie and when she didn’t get it she accused him of sexual assault. But what if she got the part, what is it then? Is she a prostitute?

    There ARE two sides to the story. Unfortunately men who have used their positions to get laid but completed the deal in getting these women the “part” well they are all OK right?

    Yeah. There are definitely two sides.

  6. To Panama Red: Good one ! yes I have been paying attention, even for an old-timer. But I think you got the gist of my meaning, just as I got yours ! LOL
    I had an interesting conversation with my wife today, she’s 62. She said this is been going on forever, if you don’t want it to happen you just slapped the son of a bitch in the face and say no. Of course you can tell she’s married to a Marine! And as it appears, people are starting to understand in these comments sections that yes there are two sides to every story. I always thought you were innocent ’till proven guilty. It appears that Hollywood does not adhear to that policy.

  7. There is blame everywhere … I am a national TV program producer who has seen everything … famous actors stoned to oblivion, famous media barons who try to buy sexual favor with money and gigs (a form of prostitution) … and a famous female personality who is suing Bill Cosby who literally grabbed my male reporter’s crotch on camera during an interview (as guys, we saw the latter as funny and bizarre) … so,
    one of the last remaining famous actresses from her era of 20th Century Hollywood makes her point known – let her have her perspective … its all part of the whole conversation …

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