Dylan FarrowBy now everyone’s heard about the abuse claims made against Woody Allen by his and Mia Farrows adopted daughter Dylan. The New York Times published Dylan’s open letter, which recounts the abuse and the aftermath of when she came forward. At the time Allen claimed that Mia Farrow was a jealous ex who concocted the story of abuse to get back at him. After a slew of court cases and investigations, Allen was spared from a legal preceding in 1993 because Dylan was seen as too fragile to testify, even though probable cause was found to prosecute him. For 21 years the allegations were ignored and Allen was once again praised for his writing and directorial skills. Following the Golden Globes, Dylan released her open letter. Through lawyers Allen would comment about how the situation was all Mia’s fault and the claims weren’t credible. Then Woody released his response as an open letter in The New York Times. Allen claims Mia coached Dylan in creating the story of abuse and preaches his innocence in the whole ordeal. The letter is filled with falsified “facts” and snide remarks. At a point Allen takes a moment to point out that his son Ronan, may not even be his child – that Mia could have had an affair with Frank Sinatra while they were together. Why take time out of defending yourself against claims of sexually abusing your step daughter to take a dig at your ex-wife? It’s moments like that in Allen’s letter that makes him seem extremely guilty of such a heinous crime. Whether you believe Allen or Dylan, the real story here is about how we treat the abused and abuser. Dylan has received tons of support for coming forward after so many years of anguish and despair. There are still people who question the truth of her statements, even though there is information that says otherwise. Through all of her statements, Dylan comes across strong and like a survivor. Allen on the other hand has what seems to be equal parts supporters and those who disagree. Each of his statements sound like Allen is playing victim. In my opinion Dylan is telling the truth. If she were just trying to destroy Allen’s career with her mother’s help, why stop for 22 years? Allen’s been continuously working throughout those years making film after film with successful, well known actors. Why not bring this up earlier? There are so many victims of abuse who never come forward, out of the fear of being discredited. That’s all areas of abuse. According to RAINN fifty four percent of sexual assault crimes aren’t reported by the victim, which is unfortunate because the abuser is free to commit the act until they are caught. It seems that in our society we are much quicker to believe the accused, in this case a well-know director, over a young woman none of us really know. Hopefully through Dylan’s story other victims come forward and have the courage to place their abusers behind bars.

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