Knox Grammar

Royal Commission and Knox Grammar

The Royal Commission into Child Abuse has been uncovering a lot of horrific stories of abuse in Australia. I think while it’s devastating that so many people have been abused, and some of their stories are heart wrenching, some of the reactions to the abuse have been much worse.

Hearing people discuss the abuse at Knox Grammar has kind of shocked me. There are plenty of people online who seem to imply that these kids deserved it because their parents sent them to a fancy pants grammar school.

I’ve been to both public school, and private school. When I attended Meriden, Knox Grammar was in our circle of friends. We all huddled together on the train station. We attended the same functions. Just because we were private school kids, didn’t make us any less human. It didn’t make us any more deserving of abuse. To suggest that the parents of these kids are to blame because they were more interested in sending their kids to a grammar school than a state school is appalling. I don’t care if you have a beef with private schools getting money from the government. I don’t care if you once hated a kid who went to a private school. I don’t care if you’re secretly jealous that you didn’t get to attend a private school.

Nobody, and I mean nobody, deserves to be abused. Whether you’re a millionaire’s daughter attending Ascham, a janitors kid on a free scholarship at Knox, or a middle class kid attending the local state high school. No matter your status, or income bracket, all children deserve to grow up, free of abuse.

October 7, 2014

Another TV dad predator

7th Heaven Dad Stephen Collins also a pedo?

So last month I spoke to news.com.au and to Studio 10 about how there was still more child sex offenders in the industry. I said people would have to be naive to think there wasn’t more. Whether it’s in Australia, the US, the UK, or anywhere. Predators exist everywhere.

I don’t know why we’re so shocked when an actor is found to be a pervert. Actors are just like everyone else. Acting is just a job. Just like working flipping burgers, delivering mail, sitting behind a desk, typing all day. It’s all just work. It’s just an actor is way more visible. We all see their work. Doesn’t make them any more special, or any more gifted than anyone else. We shouldn’t put people on a pedestal for playing make believe for a living.

This morning I woke up to a bunch of messages concerning Stephen Collins. His wife had taped him during a therapy session, and it’s now been leaked on TMZ. I probably should have had my morning coffee before listening to the tape… Seriously, if you’re feeling frail, or have been the victim of abuse, I’ll give you a trigger warning. You might not want to hear it. It made me nauseous.

Comments on TMZ are saying the wife should have spoken up sooner, but I’m actually pretty impressed she had the balls to tape it at all. Hopefully this will make the police investigation that much easier. She’s divorcing him. Whether she’s leaking the tape because of the divorce, or she’s divorcing him because of the abuse, I applaud her. From the sound of her on the tape, it sounds like she’s divorcing him because of the abuse. She sounds horrified. I’m glad there’s one Hollywood wife who has chosen to leave a man who offends against children, instead of being like those other lackeys who stood beside their predator husbands in court, defending them. (Yes, I’m looking at you Robyn, Alwen and Dottie)

He admitted to several girls on the tape. Hopefully there aren’t any more. Collins is on the national board for the Screen Actors Guild. He was on 7th Heaven and The Fosters, both of which had young girls in it. Let’s hope if anyone else in the industry has been affected, they go to the police. Hopefully we won’t get a bunch of Hollywood people scrambling to his defense like they do for Roman and Woody….

Sad day in Hollywood. But at least people are finally talking about it.

September 30, 2014

Satanic Cults in Australia

Ritualized abuse

For a long time, there has been quiet talk about Satanic Ritual Abuse in Australia. There have been a few people who have spoken up, and most were very quickly shut down. People don’t want to know about any type of abuse, let alone satanic ritual abuse.

Lately though, the rumbling are getting louder. More and more people are starting to talk about having survived high level pedophiles. They’re talking about being passed around. They’re talking about untouchable people doing unspeakable things.

Seeing how many people have been silenced over childhood assaults by regular civilians, it’s not hard to imagine just how intimidated those who have been tortured by high level politicians, celebrities, sports people and even lawmakers would feel.

On the day I was on Studio 10, talking about how there are still pedophiles in the entertainment industry, another girl was speaking out. Fiona Barnett spoke of how she had been subjected to abuse as a child. She has already spoken before the Royal Commission, and explained how she was abused by a large ring of people, including members of parliament, a police commissioner, and the father of a well known celebrity in Australia.

I haven’t met Fiona, but I have no reason to doubt her story. Just because we don’t want to believe something is true, because it just sounds too awful to imagine, doesn’t mean we should dismiss a story as a wild fabrication. Surfing the web, anytime someone brings up satanic pedophile cults, it’s instantly dismissed as the ramblings of a crazed conspiracy theorist. When I first spoke out, I was lauded as a crazed has been former child star seeking my extra 15 minutes. Ten Convictions later, and we know I wasn’t crazy. I think one day we’ll also find out that those speaking about satanic abuse aren’t crazy either.

I hope Fiona is listened to. I hope she finds her justice. I hope more people listen to her story, and we can stop more children being abused.

If you have experienced something similar to Fiona, please speak up. The more that speak, the louder we are, the better the chances are of saving the next kids.

August 18, 2014

Very angry

Wanna know how to get me upset?

Wanna know how to piss of a victim of abuse? Wait until another person goes public about their abuse, and then suggest that they’re just doing it for money for fame.

I don’t think people grasp the concept that not everyone wants to be famous. Not everyone is looking for that 15 minutes. Some people just want to be heard. They want justice. They want to right a few wrongs.

Everytime I see a new person who is being investigated, for just a minute, I’m so happy that others are following in my footsteps, and are taking on the high profile untouchables. But that joy doesn’t last very long, because it only takes a few minutes for the doubters to come out. All the people who think the only reason a person would ever speak up is because they want to be the next Kim Kardashian, or they want to pad their bank accounts.

Except for me, I can’t recall the last public figure who actually named another public figure, and then went to court. Corey Feldman spoke up about the industry, but didn’t name specific people. There’s a few others in the US who have spoken up, but unfortunately, the US has a statue of limitations. If a person doesn’t press charges pretty quick, then it just becomes slander if they name someone. Over here, people will speak up to let others know it’s happened, or is still happening. I have spoken to several other former kid actors over here in the US who have been through abuse. Some spoke up, some didn’t. They all know how terribly hard it is to live with, being judged. Every little thing you say will be over analyzed, picked apart, recorded, and then, if you’re lucky enough to make it to court, it can and will be used against you. Ever drunk tweeted Simon Cowell? Well, you can bet your arse that will come up in court. Ever said you thought a certain party would be fun to attend? Oh, you must be making up a story of abuse so that you can hob nob with the other actors then.

Most public figures simply don’t say anything. They don’t want to get involved. It’s messy. Contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t help your career. Not all publicity is good publicity. Corey has been steadily working for years. Not box office gold, but he’s still working. Think his going public about him and Haim being abused helped his career? Pfth. He copped so much shit after that, I’d be surprised if he ever talked about it again. Imagine trying to speak up and have Barbara tell you “You’re ruining an entire industry.” Think I helped my career by standing up? I was slowly finding my place in life. I was just getting my shit together. Then I went public. I couldn’t make a comeback to TV if I wanted to these days. No one would hire me. I was asked to do Celebrity Apprentice the first year, but my “minders” told me not to do it, because it would look bad if we went to court. Now it’s over, I won’t get anything either. There’s not a lot of work for people who speak up against their own. Right now, it’s “too soon” after court. Next year, I’ll be long forgotten.

As a public figure, you’re not supposed to talk about how hard the journey is, in case others who are thinking of speaking up hear you, and decide not to. There’s so much pressure to constantly say the right thing. Everyone is watching, waiting. So many people put demands on you. They’ll all use your name publicly, as if they’re right there with you, when in most cases, they haven’t checked in on you for months. When it’s over though, they all give you a pat on the back, publicly of course, then move on to the next cause. You’re left standing there, life in tatters, not knowing where to go, who your friends are, or what to do next. Can you do what you want now without people watching and speculating? If you decide to go back to TV, will it be used against you in an appeal? Will people come out and think, well, she must have been planning this all along? Or do you just go crawl back under the rock you were dragged out from? Give up on everything? Some days that seems much easier.

So if it’s that hard for people who are used to the public scrutiny, I can’t imagine what it would be like for a non public person. Funny though, with all these people pointing foul, and claiming anyone speaking up must be doing it for fame or money, I couldn’t name a single person off the top of my head who has spoken up against Robert, Rolf, Jimmy, Max or now Cliff. Can you? Do you know who any of these people are? There are literally hundreds of people who went to police about Jimmy Saville. Hundreds. Can you name any of them? What about Rolf? What about Robert? Do you even know how many people were involved in the Robert investigation? Think it was just the five that went to court? Nope. That’s just the ones who had enough evidence the police could lay charges. There was more. Many more of us. But apart from his niece, who didn’t get charges laid, do you know who any of them are? Do you think we somehow all came out of this four year ordeal better off? Are we now all rich and famous? Are we driving around in Bentleys, on our way to the Yacht Club? Are we drinking with the hipsters in Ibiza? Am I back in Oz, working on a TV show? Better still, did I manage to convert my infamy in Oz to a career in Hollywood? Yeah, cause that’s just what a producer here is looking for…. A has been child star from a foreign country who pressed charges against her on screen dad, while implicating her producer and network. Gosh, I have no idea why I don’t have people from Hollywood offering me stacks of cash for a reality show. – Yes, that was sarcasm. (Which you’ll learn you need to point out for when your blog posts come up in court)

What about any of the other cases? Are any of those people better off? Have they made a wad of cash? Are they on Oprah? Or DWTS? Or anything?

No. Nobody presses charges against a celebrity for sexual abuse to better themselves. At least not financially. It certainly doesn’t help with your street cred either. It just makes people uncomfortable. Nobody knows what to say in front of you. People at work will be paranoid that you’re now the sexual harassment lawsuit girl. People will think you magically got a bunch of money. Not sure where from. I didn’t get any victims of crime money. The govt slashed it while the police were investigating. Robert’s lawyer made a big deal about spreading the rumor that his client was bankrupt. (Of course, he’s still got enough for an appeal though) Not that I could sue anyway. While there’s no statute for criminal charges, one for a civil suit passed well before we went public. We can have the dates waived with a court order, but after being through court once, I doubt most people have the energy left to fight again. I know I don’t. I do hope all the girls in the Rolf Harris case can band together for strength and follow through on their case for compensation. They probably won’t get much after lawyers fees, etc, but hopefully it’s enough they can pay for counseling, or at least a time out to de-stress from the court proceedings.

I know I’m rambling on at this point. I guess all I really want to say is, before you open your mouth and declare that someone must be getting unfairly targeted for being a singer, actor, sportsperson or whatever, stop and think. Do you even know who the victim is? Do you know anything about them at all? Do you have any idea of what they’ve been through, or what it must be like for them to now be speaking up? Do you really think there’s anything to be gained by them pressing charges? Most importantly, when you open your mouth with your doubts, who else are you hurting? Are you questioning your own loved ones? Would they have told you something that was happening to them, but now won’t, because they think that you’ll think they’re just making it up? Are you passing judgement on a friend who may have been through abuse, but hasn’t shared that with you?

When you declare someone must be doing it for fame or fortune, it says a lot more about you than about the victim. It says that it’s something that you’d consider doing. That whole thing about robbers being worried about being robbed, or hitmen being killed, cheaters being cheated on, etc…

Most of us just want to stop the pain. We want to make it right. We want an apology. We didn’t make a consensual sex tape that “accidentally got leaked”. We were abused, against our will. We’ve already been stripped bare and had our emotions played with. We don’t need it again while already going through a shitty experience. Don’t be that person who pokes someone who’s already on a ledge.

July 16, 2014

A Secret Safe to Tell

Encouraging your kids to disclose abuse

I received a wonderful kids book from author Naomi Hunter.

Naomi wrote a children’s book, about the journey of a small child being abused, and how they found their voice and told somebody.

Most kids being abused are told by their abuser that it’s their secret. That they can’t tell anyone. That even if they did, that nobody would believe them, or they will get into trouble. Naomi shows all the emotions that kids go through, in a surprisingly simple way, and how when the little girl does speak, somebody believes her. It’s a little girl in the book, but it would work just as well with boy children.

I hope the government grabs this book, and puts it into every school library and every kids classroom in Australia. It’s such a simple book, yet so incredibly powerful. One child has already disclosed to her parents after reading the book.

You can get a signed copy of the book by going to Naomi’s FaceBook page or you can get it through the publisher here. You can also go to your local bookshop and have them order it in if it’s not already on the shelf.

Best of luck to you Naomi. So proud of you for such a great book.

July 10, 2014

The Judge said What?

Judge Garry Neilson said What?

A Sydney judge has compared incest and paedophilia to homosexuality, saying the community may no longer see sexual contact between siblings and between adults and children as “unnatural” or “taboo”.

District Court Judge Garry Neilson said just as gay sex was socially unacceptable and criminal in the 1950s and 1960s but is now widely accepted, “a jury might find nothing untoward in the advance of a brother towards his sister once she had sexually matured, had sexual relationships with other men and was now ‘available’, not having [a] sexual partner”.

He also said the “only reason” that incest is still a crime is because of the high risk of genetic abnormalities in children born from consanguineous relationships “but even that falls away to an extent [because] there is such ease of contraception and readily access to abortion”.

Ok, so it’s awesome that people no longer view gay sex as taboo. I’m glad he recognizes that. However, everything that comes out of his mouth after that just scares the shit outta me.

Does he really think that two consenting adult males who engage in sexual activity is the same as an adult male having sexual relations with a male child? Is he OK with an adult male having sex with a 10 year old boy, because gay sex is no longer taboo? Does he not understand that gay sex has nothing to do with pedophilia? One can be gay, and have no interest in little boys. One can be interested in little boys, and have no interest in consenting adult gay sex. One has absolutely nothing to do with the other.

Then there’s his comments on women. So he thinks it’s OK to fuck your sister, as long as she’s been with a couple guys before you? So many jokes about Tasmania come to mind, and suddenly, none of them are funny. I can’t believe this guy thinks it’s all good to look at your sister, think, yep, she’s obviously up for it, cause she’s been with a couple guys, had a kid, so if I want me some, I can just go get it. If I get her knocked up, I’ll just take her to get an abortion.

What planet does this guy live on? Even if a woman has had a relationship with a man and is no longer a virgin, that doesn’t mean that she is therefor open to any man to have sex with her. Does this Judge have a sister? I’m terrified for her if he does. What if he gets horny one night and thinks he can just have her?

This man needs a serious background check. Someone needs to dig in and see if he’s a member of NAMBLA. Anyone who thinks that a woman is just there to service a man, relative or not, doesn’t need to be sitting on the bench. If you can’t understand the difference between consensual sex, incest, and “oh hey, you’re not a virgin, so quit your whining”, needs some serious evaluation.

I hope this guy is disbarred. He needs to be forced off the bench. They need to go back and look at all his past cases, and see if he’s been unduly lenient to sex offenders and those charged with incest.

So grateful we’ve got the Royal Commission going on, and people are finally understanding the full effect of sexual assault on kids.

Let’s get ready for National Child Protection Week, 7th – 13th September 2014 by getting rid of this guy.

Read the Sydney Morning Herald article here. http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/judge-compares-incest-and-paedophilia-to-past-attitudes-towards-homosexuality-claiming-they-might-not-be-taboo-anymore-20140709-zt0v2.html

Thanks to Louise Hall for the article and bringing this guy to our attention.

July 7, 2014

Rolf moving to prison camp

Rolf Harris sentencing

I know there’s people who think because of his age, Rolf should have a more lenient sentence. But this is ridiculous.

Convicted paedophile Rolf Harris moving to cushy open prison dubbed the Savoy of Slammers after four weeks in Wandsworth jail

So not only was Rolf Harris given a very short sentence, but now we find out that he’s only going to spend 4 weeks in a real prison, before being sent off to some cushy prison camp, where they don’t even have fences, or make people stay in their ~~hotel room~~ prison cell. Sounds like the place Derryn Hinch talked about. Where the prison was nicer than some old folks homes, and the people certainly ate better.

If he had been caught when he was 40, 50 or 60, would they have given him such a lenient sentence? Just because he’s old, doesn’t mean he should be treated easier. Predators like him who attack young children, who have no care that their victims have to live with it for their entire lives, which could mean 50 or 60 years. These people are given leniency because of their age. They’ve gotten to live long free lives, able to attack so many people. Letting them serve a couple years and then releasing them to go home and live out their twilight years in peace? Pfth. Their victims aren’t given that courtesy.

Hopefully in his couple of weeks in jail he will learn what it means to constantly watch your back. To be nervous when someone approaches. To always have that little bit of fear. Not saying I hope anyone physically attacks him, but someone like him will probably learn a healthy dose of fear just from the verbal taunts. Still better than what his victims got.

Hopefully though, this will encourage other victims to come forward before their attackers are old. If we see people like this getting lenient sentences, maybe that will encourage people to come forward sooner, to ensure their attacker gets a proper sentence.

If you’re still wondering whether to come forward about your experiences, do it. Don’t let the Harris sentence put you off. Even though his sentence is light, his reputation in ruined. His victims will be entitled to compensation. – If he hasn’t already hidden it all, I’m surprised he didn’t have his lawyer spread rumours he was bankrupt 😉

Let’s all start speaking up. Let’s teach these people that they can’t get away with it. Let’s show the next generation that we’re not going to tolerate it.

June 30, 2014June 30, 2014

The cloak of Celebrity is no more

Sex crimes have become Celebrity Kryptonite

dark secret It’s amazing how far we’ve come in the last four years. When I went public four years ago, it was still taboo to point the finger at a celebrity for having committed a sex crime. People before me had tried and failed. Some named their perpetrators, and nothing was done, others came out and said something had happened, but didn’t dare name the people involved. All of us experienced a public backlash. You’d think the victims were the perpetrators by some of the reactions.

But now with Operation Yewtree in England, the Royal Commission in Australia and even the US has had some very public child sex scandals, things are starting to happen.

It’s been wonderful to see the attitude shift over the last couple years, although we’ve still got a ways to go.

@BrownSquirrel on Twitter asked me this morning why all celebrities say this? “Rolf thought his celebrity status placed him above the law”. Which is true, all these people; Jimmy Savile, Robert Hughes, Rolf Harris, Jerry Sandusky, Roman Polanski, etc all think they are above the law. It’s not just these people though. Look at what’s happening to people like Justin Beiber, Lindsay Lohan or Miley Cyrus, or any other celebrity that seems out of control. We teach these people that they are above the law. Nobody tells these people NO, and they may start small, but when they keep getting away with everything, they get bolder. Their crimes get bigger. Then when people do something and somebody does tell them no, they don’t care anymore. They figure somebody on their team will just take care of it, and clean up the mess. Look at the people surrounding Robert Hughes. He had plenty of girls tell him no, but he had people like Gary Reilly and the executives at Seven who simply covered up what he was doing, and allowed him to keep committing his crimes.

FYI, I’m in no way saying Justin, Lindsay or Miley are involved in sexual assaults. They’re just the big ones in the news right now with everyone claiming they’re out of control. Unlike the pedo’s though, Justin and Lindsay are getting into trouble for their legal infractions. It’s a pity that teens and young adults are getting into more trouble for kid behaviour than grown men who rape kids are though….

Hopefully this last few years of people speaking up, and these people finally being caught out and made to pay for their crimes will have the effect of making people realize they can’t get away with this shit, and they will think twice before hurting a kid. More people will see that they will be believed when they speak up against a celebrity, and will have the courage to speak up, and have them charged when appropriate. Hopefully the people who are protecting these pedophiles will realize that when the pedo goes down, they’re going to be dragged down with them, and instead of aiding the pedo, they’ll help the victim instead. The questionable ones in the US seem to be the most untouchable. People there really do seem to think that as long as you exhibit some kind of talent, that it makes it OK for you to sexually abuse people. Look at the debate over Woody Allen, Roman Polanski or photographer Terry Richardson.

Woody Allen - accused by his daughter Dylan of molesting her — Woody Allen – accused by his daughter Dylan of molesting her, but people still want to see his movies

Roman Polanski - guilty of rape, but fled before he could be sentenced — Roman Polanski – guilty of rape, but fled before he could be jailed. Will he ever be made to serve his time, or will people keep working with him?

Terry Richardson – high profile photographer accused by multiple of women of indecent assault, but people keep hiring him

Rolf Harris - Guilty on 12 counts — Rolf Harris – Guilty on 12 counts

So congratulations to today’s winners, the girls in the Rolf Harris case. Not just the few who managed to get charges. Just like our case against Robert, there was many more girls who were molested by Rolf Harris who didn’t get charges against him, or even get to talk in court. They must be happy though that he has been found guilty on at least those 12 charges. I know that even if Robert hadn’t been found guilty on mine, I was so happy for the other girls, and so glad he was found guilty on at least one charge.

If anyone out there reading this is wondering whether they should speak up against their abuser, I say YES. You never know how many other people have also been abused by that person. Some may have already spoken to police. I know there’s several people in Australia who are wondering whether to speak up about others in the industry. You don’t have to go public like I did, but please go to the police. The Officers from the NSW sex crimes squad were the most amazing team of humans I have met. I’ll be forever grateful to them. I’m sure the teams in all the other states are just as wonderful.

Let’s keep the ball rolling. Let’s keep speaking up about these unspeakable acts. Let’s teach these predators that they are no longer untouchable.

GUILTY!

Gary Glitter – Found guilty of child sex charges

Jerry Sandusky - guilty on 45 counts — Jerry Sandusky – guilty on 45 counts

Jimmy Savile - dead, but now thought to be the worst pedophile in British history — Jimmy Savile – dead, but now thought to be the worst pedophile in British history

Ian Watkins - Guilty of sexual assault of a child and making child pornograpghy — Ian Watkins – Guilty of sexual assault of a child and making child pornograpghy

May 15, 2014

Sentencing

What will he get?

I’m sitting on my couch in my RV, watching a show on E! about how celebrities cover up scandals. It’s showing how if you’ve got enough money, you can cover up almost anything, which I’ve seen first hand. More scary though, is how even after the scandals are exposed, people forgive them because, well, they’re famous. Look at Roman Polanski, OJ Simpson, Kobe Bryant, Mike Tyson. All violent offenders, and yet, still fawned over. How many people need to say they were molested by Michael Jackson before someone is believed? How many pedophiles are running around Hollywood, molesting kids, and nobody will talk about it? When people like Corey Feldman talk, they’ve got people like Barbara Walters accusing him of ruining an entire industry. Yeah Babs, go ahead and blame the victim. I’m so glad she’s retiring.

I’m pretty lucky I was given the opportunity to speak out. I didn’t want to when I was first asked. I had long left the industry, and didn’t want to be dredging up old shit. But when one of the kids in my class had an incident, it made me so mad. It was like all the rage I had buried came flooding back to the surface. When Stephen contacted me again, I knew I had to talk. People who are still working aren’t going to talk. It’s a career killer. I didn’t have a career, so I didn’t have anything to lose. Or so I thought…

Im not going to sugar coat it. The last 4 years have been tough. First, I had to think about everything I had tried to forget. I had to deal with the emotions of seeing all the people from the past again. Of seeing people who let it happen as a kid because they liked working suddenly popping up wanting to say something now like they care. Or worse, saying “Oh I had no idea.”

I feel bad for people who had to deal with me over those 4 years. Poor Stephen copped a lot of shit from me. Many days I resented him for bringing all this up. He was always super brutally honest with me, and some days I just wasn’t up for it. Sorry Stephen…. I am grateful to you, please know that.

The other thing I am grateful for, is that since my case has been so public, I know, or at least I really hope, that nobody will ever let Robert near their kids again. In Texas, Robert would be put on a publicly accessible sex offender registry. Anyone who cared to see if there was an offender near them would see his name, face and charges. I feel bad for people in Australia who don’t get to know what kinds of creepers live next door.

I was so happy to help Derryn with his Megan’s Law campaign. I would desperately like to see a public sex offender registry implemented in Australia. I think it very fitting that the day after Robert is sentenced, Derryn will be starting his Walk For Justice.

If you haven’t signed the petition yet, please do so.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/protect-our-children3.html
Here is Derryn’s schedule for his walk, in case you’d like to join him.

Day One: Saturday, May 17th
Start: 7.30a.m. Langi Kal Kal Prison gates, Langi Kal Kal Rd, Trawalla.
Finish: 9.30 a.m. National Highway A8 at Blackbottom Road.
Start: 3.30p.m. National Highway A8 at Blackbottom Road.
Finish:5.30p.m. National Highway A8, Burrambeet Road, Burrambeet.

Day Two: Sunday, May 18th
Start: 7.30a.m. National Highway A8, Burrambeet Road.
Finish: 9.30 a.m. Remembrance Drive C805 at White’s Road.
Start: 3.30p.m. Remembrance Drive at White’s Road.
Finish: 5.30p.m. Sturt Street & Pleasant St, Ballarat.

Day Three: Monday, May 19th
Start: 7.30a.m. Sturt St. & Pleasant St, Ballarat.
Finish: 9.30 a.m. Victoria St. & Boundary Rd, Ballarat.
Start: 3.30p.m. Victoria St. & Boundary Rd., Ballarat.
Finish: 5.30p.m. Lesters Rd & Triggs Rd, Bungaree.

Day Four: Tuesday, May 20th
Start: 7.30a.m. Lesters Rd & Triggs Rd, Bungaree.
Finish: 9.30a.m. Main St. & Old Western Hwy, Gordon.
Start: 3.30p.m. Main St. & Old Western Hwy, Gordon.
Finish: 5.30p.m. Old Melbourne Rd and Old Geelong Rd. Crossroads Trading.

Day Five: Wednesday, May 21st
Start: 7.30a.m. Old Melbourne Rd and Old Geelong Rd.
Finish: 9.30a.m. Ingliston Rd & Ingliston-Settlement Rd.
Start: 3.30p.m. Ingliston Rd & Ingliston-Settlement Rd.
Finish: 5.30p.m. Ironbark Rd and McCormack Rd.

Day Six: Thursday, May 22nd
Start: 7.30a.m. Ironbark Rd and McCormack Rd.
Finish: 9.30a.m. Avenue Motel, 272 Main St. Bacchus Marsh
Start: 3.30p.m. Avenue Motel, 272 Main St. Bacchus Marsh
Finish: 5.30p.m. High St & Bulman’s Rd, Melton.

Day Seven: Friday, May 23rd
Start: 7.30a.m. High St & Bulman’s Rd, Melton.
Finish: 9.30a.m. Melton Hwy & Leakes Rd.
Start: 3.30p.m. Melton Hwy &Leakes Rd.
Finish: 5.30p.m. Melton Hwy & King’s Rd. Sydenham.

Day Eight: Saturday, May 24th
Start: 7.30a.m. Melton Hwy & King’s Rd. Sydenham.
Finish: 9.30a.m. Keilor Park Drive (BP) & Fullarton Rd. Keilor
Start: 3.30p.m. Keilor Park Drive (BP) & Fullarton Rd. Keilor
Finish:5.30p.m.St.Monica’s Church, Mount Alexander Rd, Essendon.

Day Nine: Sunday, May 25th
Start: 7.30a.m. St. Monica’s Church, Mount Alexander Rd, Essendon.
Finish: 8.30a.m. Sydney Rd & Victoria St., Brunswick.

Day Ten: Monday, May 26th
Start: 10.30a.m. Sydney Rd &Victoria St., Brunswick.
Finish:12.20p.m. Parliament House, Spring St., MELBOURNE!

I’ll be interested to see what Judge Zahra gives Robert. He can only sentence him based on what he would have received back in the day. I know it will be a dreadfully small sentence. Hopefully it will point out just how far we have come, and how we’ve come to recognize that those old sentences just didn’t do justice to the crime at all.

Whatever the outcome, I think there are many girls sitting at home, grateful we’ve made it this far. Grateful we were finally listened to, that he was charged. We are stronger for having faced him. Court was brutal, but we made it through. We can make it through anything after that.

May 14, 2014

Former Friends

Or better put, Friends who are Formers

I had a little rant yesterday about faux friends, but it’s not all bad. I have been lucky enough over the last few years to make some really good friends.

It’s kinda weird being an expat. You have a completely different background to other people. There may be some common ground as an adult, and you may learn about the locals culture, but you never lived it, so it will always be different.

It’s kinda the same thing with being a child actor. You had a completely different experience growing up to everyone else. Lots of former kid stars leave the industry and end up with regular jobs, but they don’t share that bond with other people of regular childhood experiences.

I get a double whammy of not growing up in the US, and even in Oz, I didn’t have the normal childhood experience. I have been lucky however to find other Expats to share time with, and even more exciting, other former child stars.

There’s not a lot of child actors in Australia. Maybe the kids from Secret Valley, Henderson Kids, Home & Away, but most are older, not young kids. Kate Ritchie, Rebecca Smart and Jamie Croft were about the only kids my age actively working when I was a kid. The kids in the US are lucky that with so many TV stations, they had a bunch of kids to share experiences with.

The kids in the US are even luckier, because they have set up groups to help try and protect them, to support them, and to just let them know there’s people there for them. I first found A Minor Consideration a few years ago. It’s founded by Paul Peterson, who was a teen idol, and probably best known for his work on The Donna Reed Show. I had written him an email letting him know I thought what he was doing was awesome, and I wished we had that kind of group in Australia. Fast forward a couple of years, and I now have a bunch of the most incredible people I can call friends. Others who share the odd experience of growing up on TV. Some also share the experience of being abused while working on TV.

In the middle of the trial, when I thought my world was going to fall apart, I got this:

These guys are amazing. When I first met them, they had no idea who I was. Nobody in the US has seen Hey Dad..! I never imagined they wold take me in as one of their own. Yet, they did. They sent me messages of support throughout the months leading up to the trial. I went to LA and met a bunch of them in person at a get together, where I was made to feel like part of a community. It didn’t matter I was a foreigner. We all shared some strange bond of growing up in the limelight, and I had many of them thanking me for going public, and trying to take a stand for all the kids who had been abused in the industry. Unfortunately the US has a statute of limitations, and by the time some found their courage to talk, the time had passed. Others thankfully had wonderful experiences growing up in the industry, and it was good to hear those stories too.

I’m pretty damn excited that later this month I’m headed to LA for the weekend and I get to hang out with these guys again. I feel very lucky to have met such a wonderful group of people.

Paul Peterson is retiring soon, and some of us are going to try to fill his big shoes. I’ve suggested that after my incredible experience, we have an international division, which was greeted with a big yes. So if you’re another former kid star, or a current child actor or entertainer who needs someone to talk to, even if it’s via email, let us know. A Minor Consideration and it’s members have been the most amazing group, and some days, I honestly don’t know if I could have made it through this without them. These guys are not just other former child stars, they’re my heroes.

A Minor Consideration can be contacted via their website or on FaceBook

A Minor Consideration isn’t just a social group. Paul and the others work tirelessly to help change laws to protect child entertainers. People think child stars have it all, but as my case has proved, sometimes they really need people to step up and help out.