Joe Biden’s headed to the Oscars to fight campus rape. But does that mean the Academy will now be consistently anti-rape?
The vice president is joining forces with Lady Gaga at Sunday’s awards, by presenting the singer to perform her nominated song “Til It Happens To You,” which she co-wrote about sexual assault for the documentary “The Hunting Ground.”
Biden is pushing the administration’s campus assault “It’s On Us” campaign. Fair enough — he has a long record on these issues.
But the Academy hasn’t always been so anti-rape.
Cue the drumroll for Roman Polanski, the director who fled the United States in 1978 — and is still wanted here — after pleading guilty to having sex with a 13-year-old.
In fact, he’d plied that girl with champagne and Quaaludes before having his way with her. He pled down to sex with a minor from charges including “rape by use of drugs.”
But the Academy has nominated him for three Oscars since then — and actually gave him the best-director award in 2003 for “The Pianist.” His case is still a cause célèbre in Tinseltown.
Hey, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: If you want to take a stand against rape, how about taking back the rapist’s Oscar?