Josh Duggar convicted of child pornography: A peek into Hollywood's ugly side of child abuse
by Jaskiran Kaur | Fri, 10 Dec 2021 12:49:15 GMT
Image Source: Yahoo, Us Weekly

Josh Duggar, a previously esteemed TV personality went under hot water when he was related to child pornography charges. The former celebrity pleaded innocence in the earlier of his trials but the truth came out soon enough, and he has now been convicted of the charges. 

Sharing the charges with the public, The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Arkansas had shared, “A Springdale man was arrested yesterday for receiving and possessing material depicting the sexual abuse of children.” The April statement included, “According to court documents, Joshua James Duggar, 33, allegedly used the internet to download child sexual abuse material. Duggar allegedly possessed this material, some of which depicts the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12, in May 2019.”

Hence began a long-standing legal case, where Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar's eldest son was found guilty of the charges leveled against him. Josh himself shares seven children with his wife, Anna Duggar: Mackynzie (born October 2009), Michael (June 2011), Marcus (June 2013), Meredith (July 2015), Mason (September 2017), and Maryella (November 2019). Only days prior to Josh Duggar being indicted, Anna had revealed that the couple is expecting their seventh child, a daughter. 

Previous to these heinous charges, Josh was convicted of abusing five girls, four of them being his relatives. The crime was perpetrated somewhere around 2002 and 2003 when Duggar was around 14 and 15 years of age. Accepting and apologizing for his misdeed, Josh had said, “Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends.” 

He also added, “We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing, and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life.” Regardless, he did end up ruining his life. 

Without a doubt, the Duggars are extremely saddened at the turn of events and the horrendous acts of their family members. Following the accusations, his parents had shared, “We appreciate your continued prayers for our family at this time.” They continued, “The accusations brought against Joshua today are very serious. It is our prayer that the truth, no matter what it is, will come to light and that this will all be resolved in a timely manner. We love Josh and Anna and continue to pray for their family.”

With the truth finally coming out and Josh being held guilty of his actions, the family is ashamed of the act and saddened. Following the news, Jill Duggar wrote, “Today was difficult for our family." 

The couple added, "Our hearts go out to the victims of child abuse or any kind of exploitation. We are thankful for the hard work of law enforcement, including investigators, forensic analysts, prosecutors, and all others involved who save kids and hold accountable those responsible for their abuse.”

The blog shared by the two also featured a prophetic line as they wrote, “Nobody is above the law," and continued, "It applies equally to everybody, no matter your wealth, status, associations, gender, race, or any other factor. Today, the people of the Western District of Arkansas made that clear in their verdict. As a Christian, we believe we are all equal at the foot of the cross, and, likewise, we are all equal under the law.”

But this is far from Hollywood's only child sex abuse controversy. Last year in September 2020, Netflix premiered a film named "Cuties." While the plot brought attention to child abuse, it only took a few moments to point out that the actors in the film, aged just 11, were maybe abused, too. Hollywood has always tried sweeping the accusations under the rug, but with so many lies seeing the light, there is a high chance that the dark side of the industry is completely revealed sooner than later. 

Just a few years earlier in 2018, Isaac Kappy had very clearly accused the industry and some high-profile parents of specifically selling their children for casting roles. He said, "A lot of showbiz parents will knowingly give their kids to be abused because they’ll be like, ‘Oh, we’ll get your kids' roles and money.' And they take the money and.. then they just sell their kids. People sell their kids. They sell their kids for money." 

He had pretty convincingly added, "If I’m lying, sue me. Because these are pretty damning allegations that I’m making. These are pretty damning allegations. So if I’m lying, sue me." Not to forget the fact that Kappy was later said to have committed suicide by “forcing himself off a bridge” in Arizona. While his accusations and then 'probably' suicide were not cleared, there still are many proven times when Hollywood's dirt secret was revealed. 

Then there is also the case of Jimmy Savile, a previously esteemed name on BBC, getting posthumously convicted of victimizing around a thousand children of abuse, some as young as just two years. Later, John Paul Rice shared his own experience of stepping into the industry, sharing, "There was a legitimate film that I had been asked to audition for by a director. And when I told my manager that his immediate response is, ‘Oh, he wants to ‘F’ you,’ like, no hesitation whatsoever. It was expected. And it was, it was, you know, that this is the world."

Isaac Kappy commit suicide after a child abuse rant and serious allegations against Hollywood elites; Credits: India TV News

And yet, there are not enough talks about this ugly face of Hollywood so conveniently hidden under all the glitz and the glam. Rice shared that the industry has made a business out of child abuse and “Their entire livelihood is tied into making a product for an industry that does this to children.” 

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