The sexual assault cases of former USA Olympic gymnastics physician is one of the most shocking and disgusting cases in the history of any sport. More than 150 women and girls were abused emotionally and sexually. To quote Hadley Freeman of "The Guardian," the “Medals over Morals” ideology is what kept the whole problem hidden for so long. One of the prominent Olympians, Aly Raisman, almost passed out while giving her testimony. Imagine standing there, in front of the person who abused her and her teammates for years and testifying to what he had done. Her statements deliver a strong message to Nassar and other abusers. To quote her, “You do realize that we (who survived the abuse) are a force, and you are nothing." Her words gave me chills.
Larry Nassar was given 175 years in prison based on multiple charges of sexual assault. Throughout the case, 156 women came out and gave testimonies against him for an entire week. The videos of these witness testimonies can be seen all over the internet. They are sad and heartbreaking. Women who had kept quiet for years were finally able to come forward. There were many who complained in 1998--now 20 years ago--but nobody listened until now. One of the many reasons why it was suppressed was due to fear of a tarnished image and reputation, which could potentially lead to less sponsorship for the team.
Fault Of Michigan State University And Gymnastic Authorities
The president of Michigan State University recently stepped down due to political pressure, as some of the blame is being placed on the institution where Nassar treated gymnasts. Other gymnastics authorities and university administrative workers have also stepped down.
One report states that there is a certain trend that follows at the university, specifically regarding sporting authorities, even beyond the Larry Nassar case. MSU has had three such court cases filed against them where they fought hard in court to prevent the names from appearing on the police case. A similar incident has also been cited within the university’s football team too, which indicates a fundamental problem with the sports administration.
One of the athletic trainers who worked alongside Larry Nassar, Debbie Van Horn, was also a perpetrator in the whole crime. She turned a blind eye to the whole scandal for many years and there were many occasions where she was physically present when the crimes were being committed. What shocks me to my core is how a female can watch other girls being abused in front of her. How could Nassar do this? He's a human like the rest of us, after all. My argument would be, 'he is anything but a human.'
The whole incident makes me think how immoral people can be. The only good thing about the whole case was that Nassar was sentenced to life imprisonment by a female judge. That and her flawless reaction to Nassar's letter, which stated that it was hard for him to listen to the testimonies of the victims and survivors. Case closed, Larry.
