In 1991, Miss Black Rhode Island, Desiree Washington, made headlines in the print media when she accused world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson of raping her. The latter recently discussed the incident in the ABC documentary Mike Tyson: Knockout, and her name has been in the news ever since.
Who was Desiree Washington?
In 1991, Washington represented her home state of Rhode Island at the Miss Black America Pageant. According to her, Tyson invited her into his room at the Canterbury Hotel on July 19, 1991, where she was violated and assaulted.
She later checked into the hospital’s emergency room and disclosed the incident to the attending physician. The entire incident was covered by numerous reputable newspapers. The Los Angeles Times reported that the former model struck the heavyweight champion and unsuccessfully attempted to defend herself.
Virginia Foster, Tyson’s chauffeur, corroborated her testimony and disclosed that Washington was in a state of utter astonishment following the unfortunate incident. Over twenty-four hours after the incident, she was examined by a physician, who subsequently confirmed that the physical condition of her genitalia was consistent with rape.
Tyson, on the other hand, denied all allegations and defended himself by asserting that everything was done with Washington’s consent. Therefore, the incident cannot in any way be considered a rape.
The judge deemed him guilty, and he was sentenced to six years in prison. In light of his excellent behaviour, he was granted parole after serving less than three years of his sentence.
More than two decades have passed since the occurrence. However, Tyson continues to refute the model’s claims.
Where is Desiree Washington Now?
The incident brought her to public attention. The entire incident impacted her mental health and caused her and her family extreme trauma. The former model has since turned her back on the spotlight and appears to be enjoying her low-key lifestyle.
After the incident, numerous individuals, including Tyson’s supporters and the media, viewed her as a scapegoat. In 1992, Washington subsequently decided to partake in an interview with Barbara Walter.
During the interview, she discussed how the incident completely altered her personality and how she went from being an outgoing, sociable woman to someone who remained in her room the entire day.
During the interview, her revelation that she was offered $1 million to retake the case attracted a great deal of attention.
The New Hulu Series Mike:
Perhaps understandably, Mike Tyson, the subject of the new Hulu series Mike, has been vocal about his dissatisfaction with the show. According to the boxer-turned-professional harlequin, Hulu “stole” his life narrative without compensation, and the series does not accurately depict his life.
The validity of those claims may be as difficult to determine as deciphering hieroglyphs; it is common practise for Hollywood producers to embellish biographies, and the truth of what actually occurred in any given incident is influenced by the perceptions of the people telling the story.
Mike challenges viewers to consider the thin lines that sometimes separate hero and villain, and its depiction of Mike Tyson’s 1992 rape case is one of the finest depictions of a sexual assault on television in recent years.
The backstory: In 1991, 18-year-old Desiree Washington met Tyson at the Miss Black America beauty pageant in Indianapolis. Miss Black Rhode Island was she. Her secondary school, Coventry High, voted her the most talkative and affable student; she aspired to be the first Black female president.
But on July 19, 1991, while participating in the beauty pageant, her future was disrupted when she went on a date with Tyson. He lured her to his hotel room and raped her; Tyson’s limo chauffeur testified at his 1992 trial that Washington appeared terrified when she was returned to her hotel.
In 1992, he was found guilty and sentenced to 10 years in prison, with 4 years suspended. He was released in 1995 and denies the occurrence of a rape. The fifth episode of the series, “Desiree,” recounts the events.
“Desiree” differs from the other episodes of the series, which dramatise how Tyson survived a horrifically traumatic and abusive childhood to become one of the greatest athletes of all time. The narrative is recounted from her perspective.
Executive producer Karin Gist tells Shondaland, “We were really just attempting to put ourselves in the mind of a young girl, to feel what she felt, and to maintain her sense of self.”
“The objective was to give that narrative a voice based on her experience. We need to start talking about it because whenever we as a society sweep things under the rug as if they are too difficult to discuss or handle, the conversation stagnates.”
“Desiree” is inherently a difficult half-hour of television, not only because it reimagines sexual assault, but also because it poses questions about which stories are acceptable to tell and by whom.
After a 1992 interview, Washington disappeared from public view on purpose. She has been explicit about her completely understandable desire to remain in the background, and the misogynistic comments in the above YouTube video demonstrate why that was a wise decision.
