Streisand said she felt bad for the alleged victims but refused to blame Jackson
Barbra Streisand has sparked controversy by claiming that Michael Jackson’s accusers, namely James Safechuck and Wade Robson whose allegations were highlighted in the documentary Leaving Neverland, were “thrilled” to be at the singer’s Neverland ranch.
The singer and actress said that she believed the allegations made by Safechuck and Robson, but refused to blame Jackson for the alleged abuse and said that despite what happened to them, it “didn’t kill them”.
“His sexual needs were his sexual needs, coming from whatever childhood he has or whatever DNA he has,” she said in an interview with The Times.
“You can say ‘molested’, but those children, as you heard say (the grown-up Robson and Safechuck), they were thrilled to be there.
“They both married and they both have children, so it didn’t kill them.”
“It’s a combination of feelings. I feel bad for the children. I feel bad for him,” she responded when asked if she was angry with the late singer.
“I blame, I guess, the parents, who would allow their children to sleep with him. Why would Michael need these little children dressed like him and in the shoes and the dancing and the hats?”
The documentary has been met with a mixed response from the public since its release. While a number of staunch Jackson fans refuse to believe the allegations – with some even going so far as to start a campaign fighting back against them – a number of organisations have separated themselves from the singer.
It was confirmed that the classic The Simpsons episode ‘Stark Raving Dad’, featuring Jackson in a guest starring role, would be pulled from the show’s permanent rotation.
