David Lammy's powerful assessment of Ghislaine Maxwell trial
30 December 2021, 13:36 | Updated: 3 January 2022, 08:22
David Lammy's powerful assessment of Ghislaine Maxwell verdict
The Ghislaine Maxwell trial has highlighted the immense difficulty for women to get justice for sex crimes, David Lammy notes.
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"This is a devastating case" David Lammy told listeners, after Ghislaine Maxwell was found guilty of trafficking for her long-term partner, the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Reflecting on how there was immense uncertainty around whether Ms Maxwell would even be convicted, David pondered on the systemic failings of the legal system when it comes to sex crimes perpetrated against women.
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"I want to talk about women and girls. Why they aren't heard. Why they aren't listened to. Why they are sometimes perceived to be the perpetrators almost, not the victims", he said to kick off the show.
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He noted how the #MeToo movement met many detractors in its early days and how "even powerful actresses and others can be shunned and left out."
"Why do we treat women like this? Why do men get away with this behaviour?
"How could it be that women can facilitate such behaviour?"
He fumed that despite the monumental verdict in a New York courtroom, sex trafficking is a very real and immediate issue: "In our own country trafficking is going on, as I speak."
"Ghislaine Maxwell has been found guilty and women and young girls have been groomed" David concluded, reminding listeners of the human suffering involved in the case.
