We feel compelled to stand up for Al Franken, whom we have all had the pleasure of working with over the years on Saturday Night Live (SNL).
What Al did was stupid and foolish, and we think it was appropriate for him to apologize to Ms Tweeden, and to the public. In our experience, we know Al as a devoted and dedicated family man, a wonderful comedic performer, and an honorable public servant. That is why we are moved to quickly and directly affirm that after years of working with him, we would like to acknowledge that not one of us ever experienced any inappropriate behavior; and mention our sincere appreciation that he treated each of us with the utmost respect and regard.
A man not behaving inappropriately with you does not preclude him from behaving inappropriately with other women. This letter is not a testament to Franken's character, nor is it a legitimate refutation of Tweeden or Menz's claims. Rather, it's a demonstration of what it looks like to be complicit, to provide cover for someone because they were a good person in your presence.We send our support and gratitude to Al and his family this Thanksgiving and holiday season.
There's a nonzero chance that any woman—any person—knows someone who has sexually abused someone else. (One in five women and one in 71 men will be raped during their lifetimes, according to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center.) They might be generally kind to the people they don't abuse or harass. Like Franken, they might pursue laudable goals that benefit women in general. They have people who love them. Those people may still love them despite the horrible things they have done, or, like Silverman, they may feel conflicted.As more and more alleged predators are outed, there are going to be many, many people stunned by the accusations against their friends and family. But that doesn't mean they should come out and stand publicly with the accused. As Silverman said, "The only people that matter are the victims."Follow Eve Peyser on Twitter.One of my best friends of over 25 years, Louis C.K., masturbated in front of women. He wielded his power with women in fucked up ways, sometimes to the point where they left comedy entirely. I could couch this with heartwarming stories of our friendship and what a great dad he is, but that's totally irrelevant, isn't it? It's a real mindfuck because I love Louis, and Louis did these things. Both of those statements are true. So I just keep asking myself, "Can you love someone who did bad things?" I can mull that over later, certainly, because the only people that matter are the victims… So, I hope it's OK if at once I am very angry for the women he wronged and the culture that enabled it, and sad because he's my friend.