Sexual Allegations against the older Lopez brothers USA Today

[IcemanSK]

I've heard of allegations of sexual misconduct against Jean Lopez for many years, but not Steven. With this USA Today piece, it seems that they are being taken seriously, now. I don't know if these allegations are true. But I think they need to be investigated.
Lopez brothers, Olympic taekwondo royalty, hit with sex abuse allegations

 

[Tez3]

So often sports authorities are reluctant to investigate allegations because they fear 'tarnishing' their sports but it's unfair on everyone if they don't investigate quickly and fairly. We see this a lot now and it's very wrong, either victims are being denied justice or innocent people are always going to be under suspicion, whichever, it needs to be done so that justice is seen to be enacted.
We have a very nasty investigation going on here in football, abuse by football coaches of young people going back decades. It started with one coach and one police force investigating and has grown to hundreds of young people and nearly all our police forces.

 

[Buka]

Sexual predators.....in law enforcement you deal with more of them than in other fields of work. Hence, emotional feelings have to be kept in check, kept professional at all times.

An investigation is going on. Investigations aren't usually hindered by no press. Let's hope this isn't hindered by national press coverage. When I read these things, I tend to keep the Duke lacrosse team case in mind.

 

[Flatfish]

Sexual predators.....in law enforcement you deal with more of them than in other fields of work. Hence, emotional feelings have to be kept in check, kept professional at all times.

An investigation is going on. Investigations aren't usually hindered by no press. Let's hope this isn't hindered by national press coverage. When I read these things, I tend to keep the Duke lacrosse team case in mind.

But they deserved it because they are Dook... (i went to UNC )

 

[clfsean]

<sarcasm>The Lopez family ... who would've thought?? </sarcasm>

US taekwondo royalty caught up in sex abuse scandal | Daily Mail Online

 

[JP3]

Did I hear that reporter right... said that the Mandy Malone girl accused the one Lopez brother of raping her in Both 2006 and in 2015?

So.... is that right? She put herself in the position two times? I can't have heard that right.

 

[Tez3]

So.... is that right? She put herself in the position two times? I can't have heard that right.

Yes I'm going to jump on this big style. Why are you victim blaming? You don't know anything about what happened only what is reported. You don't know the situation yet you chose to victim blame, you blame the woman not the man?
and you call her the 'Mandy Malone woman' like she was an object of disgust... Nasty.

 

[JP3]

Yes I'm going to jump on this big style. Why are you victim blaming? You don't know anything about what happened only what is reported. You don't know the situation yet you chose to victim blame, you blame the woman not the man?
and you call her the 'Mandy Malone woman' like she was an object of disgust... Nasty.

Tez, relax. I did no such thing. My question was in what the reporter "reported." It seems as if the reporter is saying that the exact same girl complained of one event in 2006, which was investigated in 2008... then the same girl complained against the same guy in 2015? Does that make any sense to you?

Look at it from both ways.

"Mandy" is assaulted by the guy in 2006, she complains about it officially. It is investigated. I am assuming that she was, in fact, assaulted. Then, if the story is right, this same Mandy managed to get back in a situation where her attacker had access to her like that? Maybe it was a different Mandy? This is why I was asking if I had understood that correctly.

Then, let's look at it the other way, since you seem to think I was victim-blaming. Which I'm not. But, if she made the whole thing up in 2006, and it wwas officially investigated in 2008.... That would mean that the Lopez family continued to associate in some close way with an accuser like that. That doesn't make sense either. I'd expect distance, either way, would you not?

Which is why I asked if I had understood the story right.

 

[Tez3]

"Mandy" is assaulted by the guy in 2006, she complains about it officially. It is investigated. I am assuming that she was, in fact, assaulted. Then, if the story is right, this same Mandy managed to get back in a situation where her attacker had access to her like that? Maybe it was a different Mandy? This is why I was asking if I had understood that correctly.

Oh the 'Mandy woman' as you called her. Why are you speculating at all? yes you are victim blaming, "this same Mandy managed to get back in a situation where her attacker had access to her like that?" why are you assuming she got into a situation where she was assaulted again as if it's her fault? What if the situation wasn't of her making? Are you saying a good competitor should stop competing in her chosen sport, just so she makes sure she's not likely to be assaulted again, perhaps she had no choice in the situation, perhaps the person who assaulted her 'got into the situation', I think you should think about this and a lot more before assuming she got into the situation.

Then, let's look at it the other way, since you seem to think I was victim-blaming. Which I'm not. But, if she made the whole thing up in 2006, and it wwas officially investigated in 2008.... That would mean that the Lopez family continued to associate in some close way with an accuser like that. That doesn't make sense either. I'd expect distance, either way, would you not?

You need to look at how closed in top sports are, people with Olympic aspirations etc. have little choice if they want to succeed than to conform to the status quo and as well as put up with the people they need to work with if they want to get to the top of their sport. Abusers know this and take advantage. As I said we have a huge football coaching investigation going on, you can argue that these boys and young men could have left football to avoid any trouble but they wanted to succeed at their sport, they wanted to be professional football players, which many of them now are so with no one to complain to or who would believe them they put up with an awful lot.
“Coaching ABUSE: The dirty, not-so-little secret in sports”

 

[JP3]

Good article. So, what you are saying is that the young woman is in such an elite circle that there is no way to stay away from the bad actor? I understand it's rarified air that Olympic hopefuls breathe, but I had no idea that there was literally One school, One coach in the entire USA Taekwondo scene to which she could go to continue the dream. That absolutely boggles my mind, with how huge TKD is here in the states. I very seriously doubt that there is a town in the U.S. with more than 1,500 people without at least 1, possibly 3, TKD schools. And all of that grass roots is funneled down to the Lopez brothers? That is astounding.

I'm not attacking the woman, I'm questioning the story. The facts of the story don't seem right, but perhaps they are. I'm thinking about the literally millions, perhaps tens of millions of TKD students... and all of that funnels down to... them. I grant you, they're really good, but I would have thought there'd be other options. But, then again, we do have only the One Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

 

[jks9199]

Did I hear that reporter right... said that the Mandy Malone girl accused the one Lopez brother of raping her in Both 2006 and in 2015?

So.... is that right? She put herself in the position two times? I can't have heard that right.

Without knowing a lot more -- this is a really bad statement to make. There can be tons of factors involved that led her to being in a vulnerable position more than once, especially decades apart.

 

[Tames D]

Did I hear that reporter right... said that the Mandy Malone girl accused the one Lopez brother of raping her in Both 2006 and in 2015?

So.... is that right? She put herself in the position two times? I can't have heard that right.

Another possible scenario is that her alleged attacker PUT HER in a position to rape her a 2nd time. It's called stalking.

 

[Tez3]

But, then again, we do have only the One Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Each country has only one Olympic committee which farms out responsibilities to one committee for each sport and has one selection panel for each sport so yes it's extremely rarified.

 

[Buka]

I didn't take JP3's comments, in any way, shape or form, as victim blaming.

 

[JP3]

Thanks Buka, I did not mean them that way. Though I have noticed that people have a tendency to jump on anything that they perceive that way like a duck on a beetle.

However... I did some more digging, and Tez is accurate, the Lopez thing is merely the tip of the iceberg on this one...

Here's a more in-depth treatment...

US taekwondo royalty caught up in sex abuse scandal | Daily Mail Online

And another one..., different young woman and different bad actor...

An athlete accused her coach of sex abuse. U.S. Olympic officials stayed on the sideline – The Denver Post

Here is a different sport, where 368 (!!!) gymnasts are involved.... Sheesh...

A 20-year toll: 368 gymnasts allege sexual exploitation

I could go right on reading, copying and posting... how is that this isn't major news?

 

[Gerry Seymour]

I didn't take JP3's comments, in any way, shape or form, as victim blaming.

Nor did I. I read it as an incredulous reaction to the news, the detail of the story, rather than a judgement upon the victim mentioned.

 

[Tez3]

Though I have noticed that people have a tendency to jump on anything that they perceive that way like a duck on a beetle.

Well, I wouldn't imagine that having written it you would think you were victim blaming. Your framing of the words however ie 'putting herself in the way of being assaulted again' certainly sounds like victim blaming and I fail to see how they cannot be taken that way. If you put yourself in dangers way who else is to blame?

It's not news because it's big business and it's girls.

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

I saw this the other day when I was getting my car fixed and the dealership had the USA Today paper there. The Lopez family as I understand it has had a stranglehold on US Olympic Tae Kwon Do so much that they have played favorites and always put themselves first much to the detriment of the US Tae Kwon Do team. If they are guilty let's hope justice is served.

Obviously it is good that the FBI seems to be involved now. Beyond the Lopez brother's and the allegations made at them is the sheer number of stories coming forward on alleged sexual misconduct by individual's involved in the US Olympic organization across a large number of sports. It would seem that they have created an environment filled with predators preying on young woman and that is disgusting and has to change!

 

[WaterGal]

Here is a different sport, where 368 (!!!) gymnasts are involved.... Sheesh...

A 20-year toll: 368 gymnasts allege sexual exploitation

I could go right on reading, copying and posting... how is that this isn't major news?

The stuff with USA Gymnastics was in the news a while back. Why does it get overlooked and forgotten about after a day or two? Probably because people tend to dismiss it with "well, but, [abuser] is such a pillar of the community" and "why did [victim] let themselves get put in the same situation again?". There were lots of accusations against Catholic priests that were in the news before that became a huge story. Same with Bill Cosby.

 

[Tony Dismukes]

Tez, relax. I did no such thing. My question was in what the reporter "reported." It seems as if the reporter is saying that the exact same girl complained of one event in 2006, which was investigated in 2008... then the same girl complained against the same guy in 2015? Does that make any sense to you?

Look at it from both ways.

"Mandy" is assaulted by the guy in 2006, she complains about it officially. It is investigated. I am assuming that she was, in fact, assaulted. Then, if the story is right, this same Mandy managed to get back in a situation where her attacker had access to her like that? Maybe it was a different Mandy? This is why I was asking if I had understood that correctly.

Then, let's look at it the other way, since you seem to think I was victim-blaming. Which I'm not. But, if she made the whole thing up in 2006, and it wwas officially investigated in 2008.... That would mean that the Lopez family continued to associate in some close way with an accuser like that. That doesn't make sense either. I'd expect distance, either way, would you not?

Which is why I asked if I had understood the story right.

Nor did I. I read it as an incredulous reaction to the news, the detail of the story, rather than a judgement upon the victim mentioned.

This is a common and understandable reaction (especially from men) to these sorts of stories. A person (usually but not always a woman) reports being sexually harassed/molested/assaulted/raped by the same person on multiple occasions over a (sometimes long) period of time. Sometimes the victim may have had continued business or social dealings with the perpetrator during the time in question. The temptation is to think "How could this happen? Why wouldn't the victim report the first incident?* Why would they continue to associate with their attacker? Why would they be alone with him after the first time?"

What the person asking these questions is missing is the pervasive effects of what is sometimes called "rape culture." Complaints are often ignored or dismissed and negative consequences may be brought to bear on those who speak up. Perpetrators are often in positions of power within a given industry or social group. Avoiding them completely may mean that the victim has to give up on professional or social opportunities which may be important to her. Even if she does decide to make that sacrifice, there is no guarantee that there won't be another predator waiting for her in whatever company/school/team/industry/social group/whatever that she moves into. For this reason, some women may come to see dealing with sexual predators as being part of the "cost of business" in whatever field they are in. They may try to avoid being alone with certain people, but that may not always be possible.

*(In this case, apparently the alleged victim did report the first incident, but her claims were dismissed. This is common and that is part of why most sexual assaults are not reported.)