*“This btch… who do you think you are?! You’re no Nicole Kidman…most ppl don’t even know who u r #MelissaGeorge”**
“Care factor ZERO…Her arrogant attitude in the past in Australia,now she wants help?…Pfft!!!”
“#MelissaGeorge wanted Oz to “shut up” now she needs our help? #domesticviolence is unacceptable. So’s hypocrisy.”
“#melissageorge is nasty when asked about #homeandaway but happy 2 talk about her husband bashing her. Makes sense.”
“I’m sorry #MelissaGeorge has been a victim of #DV but I stopped caring about her years ago after she behaved like a spoilt brat re HAW #SN7”
“maybe he just had enough of your rot too … he’s human. we all have a snapping point..”
Shocking, isn’t it? These are actual comments made by people about Melissa George following her emotional appearance on Sunday Night.
The Aussie actress bravely spoke about the domestic violence she allegedly suffered at the hands of ex-partner and father of her children, Jean-David Blanc.
Melissa and Jean-David in happier times.
Last September she arrived at a French police station at 3am with bruises on her face after she was allegedly struck by Blanc.
Melissa released the horrific injury pictures from that night during the Sunday Night interview.
She says Blanc slammed her head into a metal rack during an argument.
Melissa released injury pictures that showed horrific facial bruising.
Now Melissa George is in the extremely difficult predicament of not being able to leave France as her children are currently unable to travel outside of the country without the consent of both parents. While she is able to travel outside of her country, she says she refuses to do so without the kids.
But instead of rallying behind George, many seemed to take the view she somehow deserved it for bagging out Australia, so to speak.
Because apparently the horror of domestic violence is somehow negated by the fact you’ve turned your back on your country.
Yes, commentators seem to think she’s less deserving of our sympathies because she prefers France to Australia.
Melissa and Jean-David with their sons Raphael, 3, and Solal, 1.
Interestingly, when Sally Faulkner was embroiled in an international custody battle, Australia’s heart bled for her – there could be nothing worse than having your children kept out of reach in another country.
Similarly, a judge has ruled George’s children cannot leave France without their father’s permission, surely leaving George to feel trapped. But this time, people are insisting she just leave the country and come home. In light of comments she made years ago, the pain of being separated from her children is less than Sally Faulkner’s?
With the recent spotlight on domestic violence, you would think the overly-simplistic platitude of “why didn’t she just leave” would be well and truly over by now. Why has George’s obvious suffering been negated by what she said or where she lives?
But the most disturbing thing about these comments is the fact our society seems to hold women responsible for violence perpetrated against them. The comments, in my opinion, had sinister she ‘deserved it’ undertones.
And that is problematic on so many levels. How we view domestic violence in this country continues to be royally messed up. And something’s got to give.
