What is it about?
The dance featured in the music video by Sia was the subject of international controversy, with a new group entering the public domain via social media like Twitter--the 'survivors' of childhood sexual abuse. Many of them felt their memories had been 'triggered' by this dance. Sia apologised, but claimed the dance and the video had nothing to do with that, but rather with her own inner state. Who was right? And what does this controversy tell us about the state of public knowledge about child sex abuse?
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Why is it important?
The sexual abuse of children and young people is emerging into the public domain as a major, serious and traumatic form of crime. We need to be able to discuss this issue in a responsible and respectful way. Powerful agencies are at work to deny, cover up, silence or even blame victims. Art, like the dance in Sia's video, reflects many of these issues and concerns back to society. This is it's role, and this dance performance offers valuable insights into an important and difficult issue.
Perspectives
My perspective on this is as a cultural criminologist (someone who seeks to analyse and understand crime through cultural media), and also as a (former) dancer and musician.
Dr Melissa J Dearey
University of Hull
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Choreography, controversy and child sex abuse: Theoretical reflections on a cultural criminological analysis of dance in a pop music video, Theoretical Criminology, March 2017, SAGE Publications,
DOI: 10.1177/1362480617699159.
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