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As the court case against Gisele’s Pelicot’s abusers rolls on, videos of the abuse filmed by her husband were shown in court late last week. Her bravery shines a light on the stark reality of abuse, that anyone can be abused and anyone can be an abuser.
Gisele Pelicot, aged 72 years old has become a cultural figure in recent months. Her bravery in waiving her right to anonymity, standing up in court to speak about her experiences and to look her abusers in the eye has inspired people around the world. Marches have been held, thousands of articles written, millions have engaged with the case on social media and there have even been murals painted. Her name is now synonymous with bravery and her cultural footprint only seems to increase as the court case continues.
At the centre of it however, is a horrific crime that Gisele should never have had to endure. For over 9 years, she was repeatedly drugged by her husband and raped over 92 times by 72 different men. The abuse was only uncovered when her husband, Dominique Pelicot, was arrested for a separate crime. Not only was Gisele raped, her husband had filmed the crimes, keeping them on a secret hard-drive simply titled ‘abuse’.
Over 20,000 images and videos were uncovered by police. Late last week, some of these videos were shown to the court. Originally the judge ruled that the videos were only to be shown to lawyers and the jury, however Gisele and her lawyers urged that the footage be shown without restrictions. Stephanie Babonnaeu, one of Gisele’s lawyers said
"We must not shy away from coming face to face with rape”.
The court reversed their decision and late last week, the footage was shown to the defendants.
The perpetrators of this horrific crime come from all walks of life. They are aged between 26 and 74 and include retirees, firefighters, nurses, journalists and more. If Gisele’s case shows us anything, it is that there is no one type of victim and no one type of abuser.
Many would not look at Gisele and see a victim of sexual assault. The ‘real rape’ myth introduced by Estrich in 1987 to describe the stereotype of what constitutes rape, often described as a young white woman, attacked at night by a stranger.
The reality however, is often much closer to home. National data from England and Wales suggests that only 15% of rapes are committed by a stranger, with the majority being assaulted by a ‘partner or acquantaince’.
Dr Hannah Bows’ research on this subject, ‘Rape of Older People in the United Kingdom’ is important reading on how the real-rape myth affects older victims of sexual assault, with ageist attitudes resulting in older people being less likely to be believed.
Signs are also likely to be missed, with older people not being considered as being at risk. Hourglass research in 2020 revealed that only 2% of the UK population believed older people were at risk of sexual abuse, and 35% didn’t see inappropriate or unwanted sexual comments or acts directed towards an older person as abuse.
While this is especially true for older victim-survivors of sexual abuse, the same misconceptions are present in any form of abuse that affects older people. Signs of domestic, economic, physical, psychological abuse and neglect are also frequently missed due to a lack of awareness around abuse of older people, ageism and a lack of understanding. It’s vital that awareness is raised about the specific and unique ways that abuse presents in older people.
Is the abuse of older people, and the sexual abuse of older people, the last taboo? Is it something that has to remain spoken about in hushed tones? Gisele’s bravery in speaking up about her abuse shows that society does not have to hide away from discussing these difficult topics. It shows just how important it is to dispel taboos, dismiss stereotypes and open up about the reality of abuse. It shows how important it is that we keep pushing forward, raising awareness and creating change for victim-survivors of abuse everywhere.
Gisele’s case has ignited discussion across the world and is an important cultural step in challenging the ‘real-rape’ myth and opening those discussions about the sexual abuse of older people to the public at large.
We’ll continue to cover Gisele’s case progresses.
Watch our full webinar on the sexual abuse of older people, featuring Revenge Porn Helpline, Limeculture and Independent Researcher Amanda Warburton-Wynn here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUvhvFXIP6M&t=311s
Read Amanda Warburton’s research on the sexual abuse of older people in hospitals in England here and watch the webinar on the topic here.
Read our policy brief on the sexual abuse of older people, where we outline our recommendations for change here: https://wearehourglass.org/sites/default/files/inline-files/Sexual_Abuse_of_Older_People_Policy_Brief.pdf
We’re proud to have been involved in advising production of an ongoing storyline in BBC’s EastEnders involving the sexual abuse of an older person. You can read more about our involvement here.
If you’ve been affected by any of the topics raised in this article, or are concerned about an older person in your life, you can contact our 24/7 helpline for free on 0808 808 8141. You can also visit our services page for more of our helpline services, such as our instant messenger and chatbot: www.wearehourglass.org
