This story is incredibly shocking, polarizing and disturbing. Yesterday we heard the news that Mackenzie Phillips was about to come out with a bombshell in her new memoir, High on Arrival – she’d had sex with her own father for over 10 years in a relationship she sort-of classified as “consensual.” Phillips describes the first instance she’d realized that she was sleeping with her father, on the night before her first wedding at the age of 19, and writes that she woke up out of a blackout having sex with him. When she confronted her father later to ask him about the rape, her dad responded that they’d made love. Mackenzie the began an over ten year sexual relationship with her biological father. She does classify it as consensual, but as she explained on Oprah yesterday it was more like “Stockholm Syndrome” where captive people identify with their kidnappers, and she was bombed out of her mind on various drugs the whole time. (Jezebel has a very good editorial on whether a sexual relationship between a parent and child can be considered “consensual” – thanks Mollyb for that link)
Yesterday Mackenzie’s confessional interview aired on Oprah. (There’s a segment on The Huffington Post of the interview and you can watch it there if you’re so inclined. CNN also has a pre-taped segment with Mackenzie in which she talks about how paranoid and out of it she was due to all the drugs she was taking daily.) In a revelation that brings up the cringe factor that much more, Mackenzie says that she ended the relationship with her father when she became pregnant and didn’t know whether the father was her own dad or the man she lived with, the father of her son. She had an abortion that her father paid for and “I never let him touch me again”
There has been much debate as to whether Phillips is believable and what motivation she has for coming out with this incredibly shocking news. Some people say this is personal information best left to one’s therapist and others say that she deserves a lot of credit for coming out with something so stigmatizing that can serve to help other women in this situation. Philips is of course promoting her memoir, and she’s doing a very good job getting the word out by going on Oprah and revealing something so shocking that it’s getting a lot of press.
I watched a segment on CNN live about this issue trying to make sense of it all, because I honestly don’t know how I feel about it. I did find Mackenzie believable on Oprah, but she also kept referencing her book and saying “it’s all in there,” as if trying to compel us to buy it. CNN.com Live anchor Reggie Aqui called this story “in recent memory the most shocking celebrity story I have heard,” and I have to agree. This is way out there. CNN’s Showbiz Tonight’s A.J. Hammer explained why people are skeptical of Mackenzie. “We hear so many shocking tell-alls from celebrities. What can you say that’s going to be over the top, that’s going to give people an incentive to be interested in what you have to say? Well guess what, stuff like this we really haven’t seen.”
Meanwhile Mackenzie’s family is responding to these allegations about their dad John, who died in 2001. One of Mackenzie’s two half sisters, Chynna Phillips, released a statement yesterday supporting her side of the story, and said Mackenzie told her about it over ten years ago and “I knew it was true. I mean, who in their right mind would make such a claim if it wasn’t true?” Other family members aren’t so sure, though, and two of John’s former wives have come out with statements questioning Mackenzie’s story:
Phillips’ story isn’t without its detractors: Her former stepmother, Genevieve Waite, released a statement to the “Oprah Winfrey Show” denouncing Phillips’ account.
“I am stunned by Mackenzie’s terrible allegations about her father,” Waite wrote. “I would often complain about her overly familiar attitudes towards him, and he said it was just her way. John was a good man. … He was incapable, no matter how drunk or drugged he was, to have sexual relations with his own child.”
“McKenzie’s drug addiction for 35 years has been the result of many unpleasant experiences,” Michelle Phillips, John Phillips’ second wife, told CNN in a statement. “Whether her relationship with her father is delusional or not, it is an unfortunate circumstance and very hurtful for our entire family.”
[From CNN.com]
E! Online has more from John’s second wife Michelle, and she calls Mackenzie “jealous of her siblings” and details an instance where Mackenzie told her about the relationship with John, but then called her back to say she was only joking about.
Meanwhile Mackenzie’s only other full sibling, her brother Tamerlaine, has supposedly recorded a YouTube video responding to his sister’s allegations, which is below (I cannot verify that this is Tamerlaine, so if anyone can please comment with more information. He does have other earlier videos in which he identifies himself as Tamerlaine.) He says he was in boarding schools growing up and has no idea if what Mackenzie is claiming is true. He then goes on to say that he was addicted to drugs and had his life saved by a guru. It sounds like he’s involved in some kind of cult.
We haven’t yet heard from Mackenzie’s other half sister, Bijou, but Mackenzie did say on Oprah that she’s sure her father didn’t touch her two half sisters “I know for a fact that I am the only daughter that this happened to, and I don’t know why he chose me to visit his demons upon.”
Here’s the video from a guy claiming to be Tamerlaine Phillips: “I don’t know if these allegations are true or not. [A guru] saved me, I’ve been sober a long time now. My family is a bowl of dog urine compared to [this guru]. My best wishes to Mackenzie.”
This story is really awful. This woman — since she was a young woman — has always had a beat-up look to her. I know drugs will age you quickly, but she looks damaged and to hear this… it’s just tragically sad. I feel for her.
Obviously the experience has completely messed her up. It’s clear the way she’s coming across that she’s damaged.
It’s just so awful.
So what if she chose to write a book about it, to come out in public like this is really admirable and takes a lot of strength. Let’s have some compassion folks!
CB I think the reason she refers to the book often in that clip when she runs out of things to say rather than plugging it……..
I’m confused by this. I can understand if a woman was raped as a child and didn’t know any better. But this happened when she was already grown, so she knew this was wrong. And she says that after the first time, she continued to have sex with her father. So she obviously knew what she was doing when she layed down with him. And she says that half the time she was on drugs when they had sex. So how about the other half? She was sober at those times. So why didn’t she say no? The only thing I feel sorry about for this woman is her drug abuse. It sounds like she didn’t mind sleeping with him. She clearly needs help.
THANK YOU MACKENZIE for sharing this. Your courageousness and strength in revealing this type of pain you endured will HELP save so many others! I am so grateful for you doing this and wish you many blessings and peace!
Some has-been drug fiend wants to SELL A BOOK and drops the most wicked story she can and we all got to be held hostage to holding hankies?
She’s being lauded as “courageous”? -for stumping a book with a nasty soundbite?
Mmnyesh, a regular Mother Theresa, soaking up the dollars gleaned from your tears and bleeding hearts. Yup, that’ll help others.
It’s salacious sensationalism and exploitation.
Life isn’t a made-for Oxygen Network movie with pat rationales as I read from so sooo many with inexperienced backgrounds, so gullible to believe all the sob stories presented … so gung-ho to show how politically correct and compassionate they are with all they learned from the tube.
This, this is a damn ADULT we’re talking about -from start to finish. An adult out stumping a m’fking BOOK to make $$$ of your morbid curiosity.
She’s completely ingenuine.
Okay, first of all John Phillips had five children. Mackenzie, Chynna, Bijou, Jeffrey, and Tamerlane. How is it only Mackenzie is the one whacked out and claiming incest? He was also married four times. How is it Mackenzie didn’t tell her mum or stepmums what was going on? I could understand if this started when Mackenzie was 9, and being only 9 she wouldn’t have known any better. But to claim this started when she was 19, an adult, with knowledge of right and wrong, she let her father shag her? She didn’t push him away or run from the room sceaming bloody murder? There’s something really fishy and not quite right about the story. The guy is dead, he can’t confirm or deny. Look, incest is wrong, but when you’re 19 years old you are not exactly a helpless 9 year old child, and to let it go on for ten years until you are 30 years old, drugged up or not, it is really difficult to give Mackenzie credibility.
@ eternalcanad
Yes, and she also emphatically states that “for a fact” her father abused no other.
Wonder how she knows “for a fact” considering she herself kept her “secret” for all these years.
Yeah, I’m with sassy on this one. Okay, maybe the first one or two times I’ll say she was a victim. The rest of the ten years? Were the drugs an excuse kind of like people who believe they aren’t responsible for their actions when they are inebriated? She could have been too far gone right since she so clearly recalls the experience? (I don’t know what it’s like, I’ve never done illegal drugs). I’m inclined to think she’s a weak person who allowed herself to be used. Why did it take an abortion to get it to stop?
I watched the interview, and I’d be more inclined to have sympathy for her if there wasn’t a book to plug. I don’t think she’s courageous or really doing anyone else any favors. I think she has a long way to go before she has her life together. She looked really rough on Oprah.
I believe her. She was trying to promote the book a little too hard by constantly mentioning it but isn’t that why she was on the show?
Its not as if this is the first time she has ever mentioned it. Especially since her family was told years ago.
Victims of incest are always afraid to speak out because they don’t want to be alienated by the rest of the family.
And I don’t blame her for calling back Michelle Phillips to say she was joking if Michelle wasn’t supportive.
She also claims that she complained about McKenzie being to affectionate with her dad. That is a classic sign of sexual abuse. The lines become blurred.
I met Michelle backstage ( I was the teleprompter girl) at some event years ago and she hit on me hard while completely effed up on god knows what.
After watching the interview, I am going to say it- I am skeptical of the story. MY OPINION ONLY- please no hateful comments, insults or attacks on my intelligence or heart. I have already been told I am shameful, evil, cold hearted, the reason people fail to report crimes like these, a b#$%^ etc.
Maybe I shouldn’t have watched the interview because I was more on her side before I heard her speak about it.
For those who think that Chynna is in support of her, that isn’t exactly true. Along with the rest of the family, she was very upset and shocked by Mackensie writing the book and they did not speak for a number of years after Mackensie initially told her. She says she believes what she says only because she cannot fathom anyone making this type of thing up. Everyone in the family is mad, including the ex-wives. I have also read where people were blaming Michelle Phillips for what happened to Mackensie, which isn’t true, as she was divorced from the man when the rape/incest was occurring. Michelle even said that he wasn’t a good father, a terrible drug addict, but that he was no rapist or molester.
I have a problem with a woman who clearly states that she probably would not have brought this story up had he still been alive, as it would have torn the family apart. Well, what is so different from now, tearing the family apart? The only difference is that the man accused of these atrocious acts is not here to defend himself.
Yes, there are monsters out there in the form of parents. Yes, these things do take place more often than not. Yes, it is important that people talk about the things that happen to them, so others have the courage to get help for themselves. If she is telling the truth or if she isn’t, none of us will EVER know, as we only have one person’s word on that. I do hope that if anything, her telling this will help other’s who find themselves in that situation, and they can draw strength from it and get the help that they need.
I also hope, in a weird way, she isn’t lying, because what a sick thing that would be to do to someone who cannot refute the claims against them. I will say that any man that does drugs with his daughter underage and when she is of age, is not right and needs help. I have known a few friends who have said their parents did drugs with them, and they say it f***** them up, however, none have ever said they were molested or exposed to other things. Just because John Phillips was a rotten example of a father as far as drugs go, doesn’t automatically make him guilty of raping and having incest with his daughter.
Let the hate on me commence!
She may have been 19 when it started but that doesn’t mean she was a mature adult. She was very screwed up on drugs which is a known fact and I’m guessing she probably had the maturity of a 9 year old.
My father was completely inappropriate in his behaviour toward me. Nothing close to rape but inappropriate none the less. Walking in on me when he would know I was changing etc. comments that should never be said to your daughter. I kept hoping his behaviour would change but it never did. I moved out at 17 to get away but kept thinking his behaviour would change. It wasn’t until I was 27 before I finally cut him out of my life for good. Have not spoken to him in over 12 years. Sadly it was the only way.
Why just focus on the incest allegations? What about the fact that John Phillips encouraged Mackenzie to use drugs and taught her to shoot cocaine into her arm?
I found Mackenzie 100% credible. She said she grew up without rules; bearing witness to sex, drugs, and other illicit behavior among the adults who were to have shielded her, was her norm as a young girl. It corrupted her. She looked to her father, to protect her. He didn’t. He raped her. She said that the first time that she remembered it happening, she was in a drug fueled sleep from which she woke and then returned. She didn’t say in the Oprah interview, that I remember, where her mother was while all this was going on.
Maybe Mackenzie was the only one of the Phillips children to be victimized by their father, maybe she wasn’t, but either way, her story is no less credible. Perhaps John Phillips had more opportunity with Mackenzie than with his other children. It seems like her mother was unavailable.
Mackenzie Phillips was and is courageous to reveal what she went through. She told her story in a nonjudgemental non blaming way. I hope it brings healing to her.
I am sick of these child stars or children of stars coming out after their parents are deceased and raking them over the coals. But, Mackenzie’s story is a little too much to take. None of us will ever know the truth on the incest issues. Why does Mackenzie want to bring this up now, when her dad is not here to defend himself? All she is doing is opening up alot of hurt and embarrassment for her brothers, sisters, and her father’s ex-wives. By all accounts that I have ever read, John was a drug addicted terrible father and husband. But, to make these type of allegations, whether they are true or false, does nothing positive for anybody involved.
@Meow Mix – I’m sorry to hear about your father. But I admire your courage and strength in getting away.
People – a father is always a father, and a daughter is always a daughter, no matter what the age. From her story, the incest started when she was young and then continued into her adult life. He was a predator on his own daughter, plain and simple. It’s a similar dynamic in families where physical abuse occurs – don’t tell anyone – no one else will understand. We love each other. etc.
Has anyone read “The Kiss”?
Firestarter, I also have reservations about this after watching her on Oprah and the Today Show, but who knows. I have no desire to read her book.
Thank you crash2Go2. You are right on.
I think she waited until he died NOT so he couldn’t defend himself but because she finally felt free. You always feel some level of anxiety and fear even after getting away from it.
Not to sound obnoxious or anything…
Whoo hoo!! I still believe I may just have had the best childhood experience out of all you! Yay me! Never been sexually harassed, never been inappropriately looked/touched at, never been sexually abused! never had a drug addiction problem, not even to cigarettes!( though I tried, I’m not meant to be a smoker apparently).Whoo hoo!
True or false, she hawking the story to publicize her book, which shows her to be motivated by money, extremely cynical, and unconcerned about the reperccusions for her family.
I always liked her, but this is repugnant.
@hatsumomo
I’m assuming that is your attempt at sarcasm. Maybe you didn’t deal with any of those things but clearly you got your attitude from somewhere. It is called having compassion. Try it sometime.
As a victim of abuse myself, its clear as day that a relationship like that could be built. If you grow up in an unhelthy environment, thats just what you incorporate, adn you cant tell much difference because youve never known “healthy”.
Also if youre abused by a parent, you seek to develop any relationship with them you can due to the lack it creates to not be loved either enough or healthily…. and lo and behold that hunger for love can be answered to in whatever shape or form possible.
Usually it is carried out in the classic “promiscuous teen” saga– ie men other than the father. But in this case the samet hing played out but with her own father.
Basically the only point I would like to make, is that people who have never been in a dysunctional environment, have no real grounds to judge because they cant truly know how intensely, unimaginably whacko a dysfunctional household can be and what messages it can plant into your head, and what that will lead you (unconsciously) to do.
It takes decades to slowly unearth and replace the effects of a dysfunctional home… and in that time between, youre not quite whole or healthy and may carry on doing things you arent even aware are ‘unhealthy’!. Its a painful process to ealize how much you missed out on and how wrong all the things you called right, are. I can understand wanting to get away from that pain and realization with drugs. And how do you know, what TO call right?
People who call judgement really dont help. I mean its bad enough that she and others like her had to miss out on a healthy upbringing like you guys who are judging her.
You should count yourselves lucky and be a bit more compassionate…you were spared something you cant even begin to comprehend and thus all you can do is say “it must be fake”.
Oh and I also know first hand abotu being the ‘only one’ who is preyed upon.
I was the youngest (is she?) and for some reason my dad just assaulted and harassed me the most. He was abusive to us all just by his attitude and neglect, but he figured out that I was the most fun to diretly abuse and I became the sole target.
And, similarly, my own sister cant understand why I have had such a hard time… and she SAW what happened…
so really you just cant know unless you experience it yourself.
I find it sickening… the incest (if the story is true) and the fact that she’s talking about it to promote a book. This kind of thing should be left to therapist and her family to resolve. I don’t mean to be swept under the carpet but this is not a matter that should be discussed on national TV. Who’s going to be helped by that?
I believe her if she was going to lie she wouldn’t mention the consensual part of the incest.Also she told her sisters about this over 10 years ago.
I believe it. 100%. And, to those who believe this should be talked about only with a therapist, I say: that is indeed helpful, but in NOT talking about it publicly, it is perpetuating a deep and insidious sickness that must not be tolerated. I applaud anyone with the courage to shine a light on something so ugly…book or no book.
At the risk of being non politically correct, I don’t see how this wierdness can help anybody.
Guess the war on drugs isnt propganda after all!
Anyone who tries to lighten the subject of drugs is evil to me.
I thought the ICK factor hit an all time high with Morgan Freeman, but this story certainly tops that. Not just the incest, but the fact that he gave drugs to her as a child is just disgusting.
She certainly focuses on the theme that she is/was uniquely “desirable”. Not just with Mick Jagger, etc., but also with the firm declaration of exclusiveness that she was “the only one”.
Michelle Phillips has an interesting quote that Mackenzie was always extremely jealous of her younger sisters by John.
Now, given that this is a long-proven whack-job who’d do anything for drugs and attention AND is only touting this story for the purpose of PROFIT$ -when she is no longer bankable by any other means (having already recently done the reality circuit without much public interest/$$) to drum up some ca$h … these, and more, are certainly things to make one go “hmmmmm”.
-and to those who say she “waited” until her father was deceased because she was “afraid”, her father’s been dead for many years.
-and to those who say going apeshit public with something like this is a necessary part of therapy or healing … you’re in a fantasyland -same for those who claim others will benefit by it.
She didn’t “shed light” -she exploited for profit and attention.
I don’t know whether her story is true our not, we’ll probably never know for sure. My issue is that I’ve heard this Mick Jagger story before, but in the prior version, she was 14. So which is true, and why is she changing the story up a little now? Perhaps she is either covering for Mick Jagger, or she is scared of being sued by him. I had problems with the Oprah interview, she didn’t come off as a victim or extremely believable to me????
I don’t know if she is telling the truth or not, but either way she is obviously messed up. She needs to get help instead of yapping about it to the press.
She looks like one of those toy dogs, that aren’t very well bred. Their eyes are all kinds of crazy looking because of it.
Well, the reason I bring up my personal experiences in such a way is, well, because i can! Holy Good God! While every other poster on this board wallows in their pity and try to ‘out-abuse’ each other with comparisons of who was abused the most I have enough sense to realize, though I came from a disadvantage home, I have reason to celebrate as I came out pretty much perfect. Hell yeah me! Maybe being a victim isn’t as prolific as you think!
And I do like to think I have plenty of compassion; I don’t need anymore thanks! I have enough needed for my field of study, I’m good!
Its just, gah, dont some people get sick and tired of rehashing the past and blaming their addictions and problems on something you can control? I mean, if drugs healped excaberate the prblem of incest with Mac’s dad, why wait to get clean 10 years after his death? Why not do it the moment his rotted ass was planted in the ground? She was even high the last time she was on the Today show! its on MSNBC now. So after dealing with a lifetime of drugs and no money or career left, why rehash now? Suspicions abound….
But honestly, I just don’t have an addictive personality. I’ve tried every drug out there to experiment and you know what? No harm done! I can empathize, but to a point. Patience is not my strong point. Neither is being a victim. I have a too strong personality for that. If any man ever EVER put a hand on me against my will, You can be sure to finally see what I look like on the national news. I would be infamous for what I would do. Like Lorena Bobbitt. The new phrase would be ‘ pulling a hatsumomo’…
But that’s just me. I already know women of my caliber a few and far between. Thanks.
Thank you Djw for being a very articulate voice of reason on this subject…
AND
GO Ms.Phillips…keep talking because you never know how what you say might give someone else the strength to get free…
“Why wait for 10 years”? For all you know, it took 10 years! Take your compassion (along with your awesome self) to someone who ACTUALLY deserves it. *rolls eyes*
And how do we know that daddy Phillips’ wouldn’t have categorically denied that the abuse happened? It doesn’t make it any more plausible that it did or didn’t happen.
Maybe it took this long because like someone already said, maybe this is the first time in her life she felt free enough and strong enough to do it. My sister and i were victimized as kids by a cousin, who is now in jail for other reasons, and it took us nearly 20 years to come forward and tell our parents. The only reason we did tell is because we heard he was getting out of prison and we felt we had to protect our family from him. Dont pass judgement on someones horrifying experiences unless you were the fly on the wall when it happened. I turned out to be one hell of a person, or so i think 🙂
Mackensie’s step moms are all in denial. They don’t believe her, but as a victim myself, I see the reality and pain in her face and her words, and can relate to it all. They don’t want to think that it could happen, but put together all the drug use, and the sense that “there were no rules, and you get that. It happened to me, and like Mackensie says, it’s happening everywhere. But nobody wants to talk about it.
let me preface by saying i have no idea whether or not mackenzie’s revelation is true in reality. although in any case, i truly do feel sorry for her. as her stepmother pointed out, it’s possible that she is delusional from many years of other emotional trauma and drug use and i doubt she would have told her sister about the relationship ten years ago if she didn’t truly believe it happened. so sad either way.
but i wanted to share a personal story which is vaguely related to help everyone understand how someone could seemingly consent to a sexual relationship while being an adult and still have it be considered abuse.
when i was 19, i was a closeted lesbian not yet fully aware of my sexual orientaion beyond the fact that i had no sexual interest in men and was physically unnerved and repulsed whenever a man did something as miniscule as put his hand on my leg in a romantic fashion. i had just moved into my first apartment with my male best friend in spite of the fact that he had a lingering crush on me because i was certain he knew i wasn’t interested. one night, we went out drinking (where i live, the legal age is only 18) and i came home early and alone because i was too drunk to function and was blacking out at the bar. i barely remember stumbling into my apartment and passing out cold in my bed. when i returned to consciousness, i was horrified to realize i was hooking up with my roommate. by his account, he found me half hanging out of my bed and momentarily feared i was dead, but he says after he woke me up he doesn’t remember how it happened (something i wholeheartedly believe to be false). in any case, i didn’t stop him. i was disgusted with myself, but i cared about him a lot as a friend and didn’t want to hurt him, not to mention i was still far from sober and not entirely able to comprehend what was happening. the next morning i sobbed in the shower and told him he couldn’t tell anyone what had happened. within the next few weeks, my mental state deteriorated and i became very depressed. we continued to hang out as friends and drink together and eventually it happened again. at this point, i was essentially engaging in the relationship consentually and it continued this way for several months until i finally and completely fell apart emotionally.
i don’t consider what happened to be rape, but i definitely would classify it somewhere in the realm of abuse or molestation (at the very least, in the first instance). it’s easy to forget that while 19 is legally an adult, we often still don’t have the capacity to understand certain situations. and more to the point, when there is a pre-existing relationship between the two parties, everything is far more complicated.
Tamerlane is Mackenzie’s half-brother; Jeffrey is her full brother.
Anyway, based on what I previously knew of John Phillips’ character and parenting skills, I completely believe the story. But I do think Mackenzie is exploiting this for personal profit, and that makes me sad. I think if this announcement were in connection with a foundation to help victims of sexual abuse it would be less unsettling.
She’s fucked up, and while the first circumstances involving her and her father may have been statutory rape, and undoubtedly vile and disgusting.
The fact remains that she continued to consent to this AS A GROWN WOMAN.
A GROWN ADULT. This is what burns me about feminists, they’re willing to absolve all responsibility to claim victimhood on par with that of a child.
PICK, you’re an adult, or you’re a child. NOT BOTH.
Unless she’s attempting to absolve herself of any status as a sentient, responsible adult, she’s just as responsible as her father.
Branding anything beyond the first encounter as “statutory rape” based on the fact that she retroactively decided it was disgusting or not to her liking is beside the point.
You don’t see the cast of Jackass citing coercion and abuse because they decided later on that setting their balls on fire or getting bitten by crocodiles wasn’t appealing to them afterward.
I’ll add that it’s only ever women who whinge about culpability issues at an age like 19/20 when the legal licensing age for a motor vehicle is 16.
I was fully aware of my actions at 16 as much as I was at 19, or even at 28 which I am now.
Either the aggregate of women stop maturing at 15 or it’s a cultural phenomenon of making pathetic excuses for bad behavior. You pick, this woman is disturbed.
I feel for all of you that were abused and violated, truly I do and hope that you all are better and moving on with your lives.
A few people have stated that they could tell from the pain on her face, her body language, etc, that this indeed did happen to her. I am sorry, but has it occurred to anyone that she IS an actress and she can become whatever character it is in order to give a convincing portrayal?
Also, this DOES happen, no doubt in my mind. This is not a problem that is rare. I think this type of thing happens more often then not, however, isn’t there a POSSIBILITY that she is lying and that, save for the irresponsible drug use with his daughter, that that was his only crime? Is it not possible that he COULD be innocent and she could have done this for the publicity and money? There is no way to refute her claims. There is no way to prove them either.
There have been many who have said they witnessed father and daughter doing drugs together, but no one outside or inside this family has ever alluded to seeing or suspecting that this went on.
I have said in an earlier post, in a horrible way, I do hope she isn’t lying, because these kinds of accusations are damning and terrible and for someone to make them up and destroy someone’s reputation and musical legacy, is beyond evil and despicable.
I will say that maybe, something did occur between them, but what exactly, none of us will ever know. The only two people who know for sure- One is dead and the other one is not in her right mind.
Something is just not right with all of this. She was 19! She was an adult not a child. She needs to take some of the blame if it is acutally true and stop hiding behind a drug haze. She had consenual sex with her Dad. Gross – In every way possible.
My Dad is gorgeous and I love him to bits but there is no way I would ever have those kinds of feelings for him. He is my Dad. He only gives me feelings of security.
Where where all these “mothers”. My Mum can tell a mile away if something is up with me. She can even sense it over the phone.
oh Lord Jesus…have mercy on poor mackenzie….ive never heardof something so awful….idk how she hasn’t killed herself…God forbid
im so sorry teehee for everything you went thru…i can definetely relate…i was the basically only one picked on by my mother and family, and lemme tell u it MAKES a difference! the brother that was treated good by my mother lives a charmed life, while i cant possibly have any more problems in life! our lives are like night and day…and of course he thinks im just “lazy” or “crazy” to have such a shitty life…he will never understand….its sooo frustrating..
people….please stop judging mackenzie…you just cannot imagine what her life was like unless u went thru it yourself….have some compassion
This woman is not a “hero” or a “saint” for what she’s doing. She’s only here to sell us a book, plain and simple.
If she were a true hero, she would’ve spoken up a long time ago when she didn’t have a book to sell.
I hope she donates some of the profits from her book sales to benefit other victims of sexual abuse and doesn’t just keep all of the profits for herself.
I don’t actually doubt the story. I think her father was a full-on scumbag and I don’t think Michelle’s in a position to throw stones at glass houses either. One quote from MacKenzie really creeped me out (I’m paraphrasing): “Consensual incest needs a face put on it”. My first reaction was, “No, no it doesn’t”.
Get past the “Eeewww” factor and it is understandable: The parent always has the power in the relationship — they program you, so to speak, from birth. She had a fucked up childhood thanks to Dad and (Dad’s) drugs and I don’t doubt she was desperate for her famous Dad’s attention/acceptance. It gets grey when you reach age of majority and you use it to make a buck though, doesn’t it?
A great book to read and get his side of the story if PAPA JOHN by John Phillips. He goes into great detail about his life before during and after the Mamas and the Papas. He’s very candid about the drug abuse and that he got Mac addictied to drugs etc.I seem to recall that early in his childhood he was exposed to very vile porn from his grandfather side. please correct me if I’m wrong. And while he was a druggie to the end, her decribing this going on for 10 yrs is just over the top. I can see it happening the first time, but really she was an adult, she did not live with him. That means she purposely had to go to him or invite him over to have sex! And all that time, as a full grown adult, even on drugs she couldn’t say no, or protest or tell others what was going on?I think she’s lying about the rest, maybe not deceitfully but the delusions from the drugs have warped her head.
Thanks to everyone who is sharing their story and speaking out.
I liek the fact that things can be consensual but not healthy or right or good for you, given the state of mind you can be in when consenting, or even the motional and psychological(or chemical!)condition you are in.
Really there is no one way to anyones personal story, each event has to be considered by the people involved in it who know themselves, the other persons invovled, and other external factors that lead to the events that occurred, and only they have the right to assess and identify the outcomesd or consequences as ‘good or bad, acceptable or not’. The experience is wholly personal and cant be assessed from the outside.
There is a lot of complaint about trying to make a profit by selling a book— but why is it bad to profit off of a book about bad events but its ok to profit off a book abotu posditive events?
If she shared ab ook of all the family recipes and stories of her cooking with her dad, no on would claim selfishness and extortion… But if she discloses something that is ethically and psychologically relevant and weighted people dont know where to stand on it (because they dont have the information!) or dont even want to hear about it and are quicker to banish the idea and her possible intentions. Why?…I mean honestly I dont get it pep-le profit off of books daily, and reality shows, clothing lines etc…and they decide what to do with the money they make, too.
How come she has to do anything more than share her story in order for her sharing to even be acceptable at all…is she tainted for what she has been through, and I will also add for what she has DONE?
Maybe it is an issue of holding judgement against her for “being so messed up” and acting out that way well into later life. But she still has a right to share her story and be heard and believed, if and when this is indeed a true story, and it does still help to shed light on the plight of the millions of victims, and help them maybe understand themselves better, too.
I for one would want to read the book for that reason alone.
Hmm along that line of reasoning, people love to buy explosive tell-all books about sexual escapades and love to buy sex tapes from celebrities etc, and that somehow is better or good.
But this is wrong, when its the exact same information–
So like if it is amusing to us, it is “right” to do it, but if it no longer amuses us or makes us uncomfortbale, the same act is suddenly “wrong” and so is the person who engages in it (sells the book/makes the video).
Double standard, or, shifting standard much…
Just an observation. 🙂
I do not know whether her allegations are true or not.
BUT: for the people who say that she is no victim because she was a consenting adult, or ask how could she consent:
It is more common than you think to engage in a relationship with a person who raped you or abused you, if that person is family or a friend. It is a desperate attempt to rationalise it and pretend you are in control and you were not raped. It is unhealthy, but a coping mechanism nevertheless.
The circumstances of a rape, e.g. by someone you know and have to maintain a relationship with, a date-rape, a sexual encounter under the influence of drugs/alcohol that you do not remember consenting to, have impact on how you may deal with it. Often it is easier for the victim’s mind to convince themselves that they consented and this was what they wanted, than admit they were violated & have to deal with teh powerlessness of it.
No one is saying anything about Tamerlane’s wacked-out video – did anyone watch that shiz?
teehee, i agree completely with your comments.
@ Tia C: I was wondering the same thing; that video freaked me out–boy, is that guy whacked out of his mind.
@hatsumomo: You are unreal. And not in a good way.
@ everyone else who DID go through abuse: I hope your demons leave you alone at night, and give you peace.
I don’t know if what happened really did; we will never know and I will not watch any video of it. BUT one reason she might have waited so long to tell was for the simple fact that if she had told while he was still alive, he would have twisted everything she said and made her out to be the bad one. That’s what they do. Tell you never to say anything or no one would believe you; they will all hate you and Mommy might make me go away forever. They say YOU are making me do this to you.
The Truth Will Set You Free. The reason you take drugs is to escape the shame and pain you feel inside. I was a rape victim and know all too well the pain inside your stomach that you go through when you try to cover or hide something, it makes you sick. Sharing and writing helps to relieve the pain. I’m sure she will be forever shamed by this, but the pain of the past has been released so that she can have closure, an move on in her journey for peace.
There are so many mentally handicapped, special needs children who were from families that have been shown to be “incestuous”. Mental handicaps may skip a generation or two but it will show up in the offending family. They are Gods children and they all look alike no matter what color they are. My rape was by a friends sisters boyfriend, not a family member. Lets pray for Mackenzie and not prey on her for speaking and standing her own truths as she recalls it; she’s trying to find peace. Peace of mind.
Dr. G
OMg Hatsumomo- or whatever your name is – you DO sound obnoxious. Take your big fat ego and all the “awesomeness” that is you and post on a message board for perfect people (as they are so few and far between, as you say) I mean come on! aren’t you a little bit ashamed of yourself?….why the ugly posturing? When people have been harmed, it is very hard to repair the damage – from what I understand, it takes years. Is that okay with you, huh? take it down a notch or three…jeez some people
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