Aria describes being raped by Karl Lagerfeld, in a way that makes his raping her appear systematic, prepared, and common. Lagerfeld spoke like a perpetrator during his life. An article in Numéro last year starts with the words: "A truly free spirit, Karl has no taboos..."
Please take note! This is code language to glorify those who abuse with impunity. One of Lagerfeld's quotes in bold is: “If you don’t want to have your pants pulled about, don’t become a model! Join a nunnery, there’ll always be a place for you in the convent. They’re recruiting even!" The comment was part of his response to a question about MeToo, in which he defends Karl Templer, a creative director accused in February 2018 by three models of yanking their breasts, touching their crotches and brusquely pulling down their underwear. Lagerfeld complains about the consequences Templer had to face, and adds that "from now on, as a designer, you can't do anything." I want to reiterate that rapists and pedophiles protect each other, and sound exactly like this.
The problem with the elite is that their narcissism - an emotionally decrepit condition which places them, like infants, at the center of the universe - has them convinced others are lucky to be near them. Since they themselves don't have self-esteem, they can't conceive of someone who might feel worthy without having position and status in the world. They don't have room in their mind frame for such a person. In their arrogance, everyone is below them. And whomever is equal or higher on the societal ladder gets respect, or is at least taken seriously. In rigid power systems, those below are accepted and rewarded according to the lengths they will go to enable and commit crimes - loyalty - and not according to their talent or hard work.
The enablers get to feel they are cool, belonging to the in-crowd. This is tempting, because it certainly is no fun belonging to the out-crowd, to be mocked and shunned. Only, all the little things that help someone believe they are cool are all about proving something about oneself - and if it needs proving, it means it arises out of lack. Psychologically speaking, this is the emptiness caused by disconnect or dissociation due to unresolved trauma or unmet emotionally developmental needs, and the resulting inability to integrate.
Those with the lowest emotional maturity level, who are most disconnected from their inner voice of conscience, rise to the top of rigid power structures. Lagerfeld sounds harsh, vulgar and petty in the Numero interview. He uses cheap, demeaning generalizations. In an interview for the British Mirror, he claims he had a perfect childhood, yet also says that he hated being a child. He assures the interviewer he experienced no trauma, that he was just impatient to be a grown up. Such an idea in a child comes from a negative place, from being unable to be present with what is, and desire to be on the other side of his experience. Lagerfeld expresses his wish for his ashes to be dispersed together with his mother’s, probably granted after his death in 2019. Extreme deference to one parent is common among power addicts. It is one indication of how they are stuck, still elevating the original authority figures to god status, or as their only true love. Whatever lay behind Lagerfeld’s idealized image of perfection he believed his childhood to be, it resulted in rape. He mocked MeToo and was never brought to account.
Can we be the adults who see through the language and code words and the protection and sustenance of rapists and pedophiles? This global secret is finally gaining attention, and we are just at the beginning of the revelations. Once you know, you can never see the world the same way; which is why it is so hard for many to accept and it is easier to blame the victim. Survivors know very well, before they speak out, that they will have to face mockery, disdain and disbelief. It is very difficult to come forward realizing you will have to deal with personal attacks and defamation, which easily trigger the original trauma. If you don’t name perpetrators, you get criticized. Aria, who does, is also criticized, and ignored by the mainstream media. But the moment a large enough number of us acknowledges the truths survivors have been holding in isolation, the moment enough of us voice our outrage, the structure will crumble, so that a new societal structure with solid foundation, can emerge.
Note: The article about Karl Lagerfeld in Numero Magazine was removed from the web. The link was recovered by the Wayback Machine