Kobe Bryant and his teenage daughter, along with seven other people were killed in a helicopter crash late last Saturday evening. This was a tragic accident in which several innocent lives were lost. My initial reaction was sadness for Vanessa Bryant, her surviving children and the rest of the Bryant family. She lost a husband and a child, her children lost a father and a sister. They, along with the other seven victims and their families deserve our sympathy and compassion.
This tragedy took place a few days ago now, but one of the first things I thought of after I heard the news was “There is now one less rapist in the world. No great loss.” I admit that I did not pay a whole lot of attention when he was dealing with the rape allegations back in 2003, so my memory of it isn’t vivid. However, I have since reread the news reports and read transcripts of his police interviews, hearings and the apology letter he “wrote” that his lawyer read in court. The letter was pretty much an admission that he raped this young woman. I’m not going to relitigate that case here, but you can read the transcripts here and a summary of the case and the “apology” letter here. Some people may be reluctant to bring this up out of some misguided notion of not wanting to speak ill of the dead. I am not suffering under any such apprehension.
It is actually pretty disgusting that he went on to a stellar basketball career during which he was able to amass even more wealth, power and fame which allowed him to get away with rape in the first place. Fast forward to the end of his career. He announced his retirement and went on a tour around the NBA where he was showered with accolades and an outpouring of love as a beloved sports hero. I was never a fan because I remember when he came into the league fresh out of high school and acted like the petulant child he was. I remember his feud with Shaquille O’Neal because he felt like he should be the alpha dog, which pretty much proved that he was still a petulant child. His rape of the young woman took place around that time frame and he was trying to assert his manhood, his strength and his power over her, like a child who does things he knows he shouldn’t, simply because he can. Imagine being bombarded with images of your rapist being hailed a hero.
Fast forward again a few years later to present day when news breaks that your rapist died a tragic death. Once again, there’s an overwhelming outpouring of love for the man who brutalized you. Memorializing him as a legend. Beatifying him for basketball sainthood. A role model. A good family man. But when someone has the nerve to mention the fact that there was an abundance of evidence that he raped you, they get told to show respect. In one case, a journalist actually got fired for tweeting a story that reported the facts of the case. Would I have done that on the day of the accident? No. I don’t think that was appropriate. Vanessa Bryant lost not only a husband, whom I presume she loved, but she also lost a child who I am certain she loved. I didn’t see a need to bring up her now-dead husband’s treachery in the immediate aftermath. Nevertheless, while I wouldn’t have brought it up then, it is a chapter in Kobe’s life that is not only legitimate but necessary to discuss while remembering him in death.