Lanre Bakare

So like that, I think that is built into the way that people think about Jackson and in some ways kind of move those kind of really dark allegations out of the way and say, well, actually, there's an explanation for this.

The other thing as well is he was like this kind of Peter Pan style character.

So that somehow explained the fact that he wanted to hang out with children.

Like he hadn't had a childhood.

So therefore it kind of makes sense that he wanted to hang out with these kids.

Even though when you think about it again, it's like, why was this full grown man in his mid thirties hanging out with, you know, 10 year olds sleeping in the same bed as them?

You know, it never, it never smelt right.

But with, with Jackson, because of the biography, I think a lot of people think,

justified it in their own heads and rationalized it and said, well, it kind of makes sense, so we'll kind of allow it.

So I think there's a long history of black cultural critics defending not just Michael Jackson, but many black figures who are accused of heinous crimes.

So Bill Cosby, R. Kelly, and Michael Jackson.

And often the argument is rooted in this idea that

Look, historically, African-Americans have been treated horrendously.

You've obviously got the 400 years of slavery.

You've got Jim Crow.

And then you've got racist practices leading up to today that continue that we all know about.

So when someone who is a huge figure within the black community is then shot at, people say, well, hang on a minute.

Yeah, Michael Jackson might have done some of these things.

We don't know.

They're accusations or allegations.