Kesha has sadly lost a court case – and plea – to be released temporarily from her contract at Sony.
Dr. Luke, the producer with whom she worked, it has been reported, sexually abused her multiple times, but due to contractual and legal reasons, Kesha must nevertheless work and record music with her abuser.
The Guardian reports: “the physical and sexual abuse began soon after she signed with him in 2005, when she was 18”.
The New York Daily News furthermore states: “Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich said Sony would suffer irreparable harm if Kesha was not compelled to abide by a contract that requires her to make six more albums with the company. The judge said that granting the singer’s request to nullify her deal would undermine the state’s laws governing contracts and the court couldn’t do that.”
So, let me get this straight…
A woman who has been abused – sexually, physically and mentally – is forced to continue working with the perpetrator because of a contract? Because it would “undermine state laws governing contracts”? Because a record label – which I’m sure is far from suffering financially – would suffer “harm”?
So what happens when a human being suffers harm? This is where the “irreparable” harm lies, full stop.
The irreparable harm is the years – 8 years to be specific – of the sickening thought of having to work with, and be reminded of the same face who abused you, day-in-day-out. And Kesha is now forced to be confronted with this same face for SIX more albums. For the reasons that have been stated by the court of New York, they are absolutely absurd and simply inhumane. Kesha left the court sobbing with her mother by her side and declined to speak to reporters.
Fellow American singers have reached out to Kesha, including Lady Gaga who tweeted: “There are people all over the world who love you, @KeshaRose” and Ariana Grande: “My heart is with @KeshaRose”. The hashtag #FreeKesha is trending worldwide in a bid to release her from the contract.
The American pop star renowned for her colourful and bubbly personality released a statement to Twitter reading “Hope is the Only Thing Stronger than Fear” – she’s not backing down just yet.
The fight for the woman’s voice may sometimes seem like a losing battle. With general inequality still a mainstream concept and harrowing examples such as Kesha’s going on in the world, this just goes to show how much we need to keep fighting for all women of any circumstance. Not just women, but justice overall – no one deserves this kind of pain.
#FreeKesha
