We can add Illinois Representative Danny Davis to the list of men who have made the highly offensive suggestion that convicted rapist R.Kelly has the potential for a second chance.
In an interview with TMZ, Davis, who was on Capitol Hill after the verdict, offered some startling thoughts about Kelly’s trajectory regarding his conviction for multiple crimes involving sex trafficking and racketeering.
According to Davis, Kelly is a talented artist and therefore, he will have a good chance of redemption once he serves his sentence.
Kelly has not yet been sentenced. If society, particularly young Black women and girls, are lucky, he will be sentenced to life and never get the opportunity to test Davis’ theory.
Granted, Davis spearheaded the Second Chance Act of 2007, so he is all about redemption. The goal of the law is to enhance programs post-release programs to more easily transition back into their communities.
The fact is that America has one of the highest recidivism rates in the world at over 76 percent. Most offenders re-offend and within five years.
Additionally, that Davis would even suggest that a proven pedophile should be looked at as anything other than what he is, is offensive.
Davis said that what Kelly decides to do with a second chance is up to him.
Most of us know what he will do with a second chance. The same thing he did when racism and misogynoir allowed him to walk free in his 2008 trial where he urinated on a 14-year-old girl on tape – prey on more victims.
Bill Cosby rushing to Kelly’s defense was bad enough. A public official such as Davis is speaking as if the issue at hand is a convenience store robbery and not the theft of Black girls’ spirits through sexual abuse.
Davis can be contacted through his official government website. Primary elections for Illinois representatives will take place on March 15, 2022.
