Friday, May 22, 2015

Mike Huckabee Defends the Duggars

As discussed in a prior post, Josh Duggar resigned from his position at Family Resource Council Action yesterday after news of his sexually predatory behavior became public. Amidst the public outrage, former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is defending the Duggar family.

In a March 22nd Facebook post, Huckabee voiced his support for the Duggars in a manner that minimize the situation. I'd like to parse Huckabee's Facebook post, in which he insisted that the abuse was in the past and blasted the "blood-thirsty" media for its attention to the scandal.

First, Huckabee described Josh Duggar's abusive behavior as "inexcusable" but not "unforgivable".
"Janet and I want to affirm our support for the Duggar family. Josh’s actions when he was an underage teen are as he described them himself, 'inexcusable,' but that doesn’t mean 'unforgivable.' He and his family dealt with it and were honest and open about it with the victims and the authorities."
No, they weren't. According to In Touch Weekly, Jim Bob Duggar told police that he's learned about Josh's abusive behavior in 2002, but did not have Josh speak with Arkansas State Trooper Jim Hutchens until 2003. Before taking Josh to Hutchens, Jim Bob discussed the matter with church elders, but did not seek professional help for his son. What, if any, support was shown to Josh's victims remains unknown. The family did not deal with the abuse appropriately, and instead of truly being "honest and open about it", they kept it under wraps for years.

Next, Huckabee chided the "blood-thirsty media" for "sensationalizing" the scandal, insisting that "Good people make mistakes".
"No purpose whatsoever is served by those who are now trying to discredit Josh or his family by sensationalizing the story. Good people make mistakes and do regrettable and even disgusting things. The reason that the law protects disclosure of many actions on the part of a minor is that the society has traditionally understood something that today’s blood-thirsty media does not understand—that being a minor means that one's judgement is not mature. No one needs to defend Josh’s actions as a teenager, but the fact that he confessed his sins to those he harmed, sought help, and has gone forward to live a responsible and circumspect life as an adult is testament to his family’s authenticity and humility."
Mike, sexual abuse is not a "mistake"; it's a morally reprehensible act and crime. Even if Josh's judgment was immature, his behavior was evidence of a grave problem that his parents refused to take seriously. Furthermore, how do we know that Josh's predatory impulses were ever truly addressed? The Duggars followed Bill Gothard, and from what we know about Gothard's Advanced Training Institute, it's unlikely that Josh received sound advice about his behavior.

Sexual abuse is a serious matter, and the media has every right to devote attention to the scandal. When the stars of 19 Kids and Counting are implicated in a morally reprehensible scandal, of course the media should report on the matter. The scandal shattered the Duggar's carefully crafted image of a wholesome Christian family and exposed their hypocrisy in demonizing LGBTQ people as supposed predators.

Huckabee argued that the media was revictimizing Josh's victims by bringing up the abuse.
"Those who have enjoyed revealing this long ago sins in order to discredit the Duggar family have actually revealed their own insensitive bloodthirst, for there was no consideration of the fact that the victims wanted this to be left in the past and ultimately a judge had the information on file destroyed—not to protect Josh, but the innocent victims."
In a breathtaking reversal, Huckabee accused the media of victimizing Josh's victims by drawing attention to the abuse. By deflecting attention and blame onto the media, Huckabee minimized Josh Duggar's behavior.

Huckabee concludes his statement by reminding readers that no one is perfect, and that we are all sinners.
"Janet and I love Jim Bob and Michelle and their entire family. They are no more perfect a family than any family, but their Christian witness is not marred in our eyes because following Christ is not a declaration of our perfection, but of HIS perfection. It is precisely because we are all sinners that we need His grace and His forgiveness. We have been blessed to receive God’s love and we would do no less than to extend our love and support for our friends. In fact, it is such times as this, when real friends show up and stand up. Today, Janet and I want to show up and stand up for our friends. Let others run from them. We will run to them with our support."
While no one is perfect, most people do not molest children. Most people do not utterly mishandle and obscure sexual abuse. The Josh Duggar scandal is not about imperfection, but about a serious crime against five children. Huckabee's arguments sounded suspiciously like sin-leveling, which holds all sinners as equally guilty and ignores the fact that some sins are far worse than others. His refusal to recognize the gravity of the situation floored me.

Huckabee's insensitive statement is yet another example of a religious figure minimizing abuse, deflecting focus, and failing to hold guilty parties accountable. His words boil down to the same excuses that people use when closing ranks around predators: it's in the past ... he said he was sorry .. you're a sinner too so shut up ... stop attacking this poor man! This pattern plays out in too many churches when abuse victims seek help, and now it has played out on Huckabee's Facebook page.

(Hat tip to CNN and Right Wing Watch.)

5/23/15 UPDATE: Raw Story is reporting that Huckabee's Facebook followers are blasting him for defending the Duggars. Even conservative Christians can't swallow Huckabee's defense of Josh, Jim Bob, and Michelle.

15 comments:

  1. I am not sure of all the facts in this case, but I am aware of it.

    I think the important part is that they are holding themselves up as the ideal moral Christian family and the facts (as in many cases) show that they are anything but moral

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    1. Christian -- Their hypocrisy is so glaring. For all their talk of purity and chastity, they didn't live up to those principles.

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  2. What, if any, support was shown to Josh's victims remains unknown.

    The de-emphasis on the victims, both in Huckabee's post and in Christian Right responses to this scandal more generally (such as the "boys are curious" item in your round-up below) is striking, and it parallels attitudes shown in the Catholic Church's shielding of molesting priests.

    I think it reflects the difference between secular and religious morality. From a secular viewpoint, it's only the existence of a victim that makes something wrong at all -- an action is wrong only if, and only because, it harms someone else. Religious "morality" is based on taboo systems. An action is wrong because it violates a taboo; whether it harms anyone or not is irrelevant. The important issue is not the effect on the victim (or even whether there is one), but rather the moral trajectory of the perpetrator -- did he repent, does God forgive him, etc.

    It's why I generally refer to religious "morality" by the term "taboo system". It's not real morality at all.

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    1. Infidel -- Excellent observation. They clearly haven't given much thought to the moral dimensions of Josh's behavior and his parents' response, filtering everything through a fundamentalist lens.

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  3. Amazing how quickly people like Huckabee came to the defense of Josh Duggar and announced how Jesus forgives, so everything's okay. But those same people remind us all the time about Bill Clinton's BJ, never knowing if Clinton made things right with his god. That's not surprising with these sorts of Christianist hypocrites, is it.

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    1. Shaw -- They're very selective about the sins they forgive. Their moral system is terribly warped.

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  4. I'd be able to somewhat buy into the argument that Josh was a minor and therefore less culpable than a mature adult - if, as you say, his family had immediately reported the crime and seen that Josh get treatment. Also, Infidel753 makes an excellent point. What about the victims? Why is there so little focus on them?

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    1. Donna -- The victims have been completely erased in this whole scandal. Jim Bob, Michelle, and Huckabee should have considered THEM.

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  5. So a good person may, on occasion, sexually molest children. In contrast, a bad person is a big meanie who exposes the good person's crimes and holds him accountable.

    Got it. And I must say, Huckabee's presumption in forgiving the perpetrator for something that did not happen to him is simply too precious for words.

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    1. Agi Tater -- Huckabee's moral reasoning is completely backwards. One gets the impression that he isn't thinking about justice or the victims; rather, he just wants this scandal to go away.

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  6. I am so distressed by this situation I've zapped my phone three times trying to make a comment.

    Suffice it to say I am glad all is exposed. For the good of all and may it harm none may the rot within be exposed. May victims get what they need. May the rest of the world come to their senses and realize when anyone professes to be 'holier than thou' to place that person where they belong - in the dumpster.

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    1. Connie -- Sorry about the commenting troubles! Thanks for stopping by.

      I've found that when people put an enormous amount of effort into constructing a perfect, wholesome exterior, it's usually because they have something to hide. I never dreamed that the Duggars were hiding something this horrific, but I'm glad that the public now knows about it.

      I worry about Josh's victims. The Quiverfull/Christian Patriarchy subculture isn't sensitive to victims of sexual abuse. I hope they find the support they deserve someday.

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  7. Now the Duggar's won't be put on such a pedestal, as it seems the media and others tend to do. I remember when the show first came out several Mormon friends of mine became obsessed with the show and would go on and on about how the Duggar family is the epitome of great family values. I could never stomach the show and felt like I was watching a train wreck if I did see clips of it.

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    1. Heather -- How have those Mormon friends reacted to the news? Are they defending the Duggars, blasting the Duggars, or avoiding the subject?

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    2. Fortunately I'm not friends with those ladies anymore;) so I have no idea. But id hope they'd blast the Duggars.

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