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Alyssa Evans By now, you’ve heard about the story or at least seen the pictures on your Facebook feed.
After over a year of legal proceedings made in an attempt to get out of her current contract with producer Lukasz Gottwald (Dr. Luke), singer Kesha was denied releasement . Why was Kesha in court with her producer? Kesha claims that throughout their 10 year professional relationship, Gottwald drugged, raped and emotionally abused her. The two have a 10-year-old contract under Sony, requiring Kesha to produce six more albums.
In a New York Times article, attorney Scott A. Edelman spoke out on behalf of Sony. “Sony has made it possible for Kesha to record without any connection, involvement or interaction with Luke whatsoever, but Sony is not in a position to terminate the contractual relationship between Luke and Kesha,” Edelman said. Yet, Kesha’s lawyer has claimed that if she were to stay with the company and record without Gottwald, her music wouldn’t be promoted. Senior Kim Stanish, a vocal performance and environmental policy double major, finds Sony’s inaction to be unfair. “The fact that Sony isn’t doing anything to help her [and] he’s getting away clean is ridiculous. I think it’s wonderful that social media has been such a big part of this and is supporting her and helping her find an outlet and be able to express herself,” Stanish said. “It’s not fair, you shouldn’t be repressed by something as dark as that.” Thousands of people have spoken out to show support for Kesha, including other celebrities: To show support for Kesha, Lena Dunham published an essay discussing the issue and how it is important for more than just those involved with the case. “A huge part of Kesha's argument rests on her lawyer's assertion that Gottwald, potentially enraged by Kesha's sexual-assault allegations, could make efforts to bury her subsequent albums, preventing her from publicizing and therefore profiting from her work,” Dunham said. “This kind of control is a cornerstone of domestic abuse, and it's far too common: according to the National Network to End Domestic Violence, financial abuse is an aspect of approximately 98 percent of abusive relationships .” Dunham has a point, regardless of whether Kesha’s claims are true or not. If a woman is abused, should she keep the issue to herself? What if the abuse happened 10 years ago? Yesterday? Does abuse become irrelevant over time? The answer is no. If you or someone you know has been affected by abuse, please feel free to contact Western’s Consultation and Sexual Assault Support (CASAS) program . Let The Western Front know what you think about Kesha’s case by tweeting @TheFrontOnline .

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