Marcus Dixon was convicted of the statutory rape of Kristie Brown while they attended high school together. He spent some time in jail, but became a cause celeb and now has NFL dreams while Kristie was run out of town and accused of racism and ruining Marcus’ life.
Kristie Brown (Photo)
In the interest of full disclosure, I will state up front that I have personal knowledge of this case and peripherally know some of the people involved. I also know the community very well. Lindale, Georgia is a community that suffered economically as a result of NAFTA. The cotton mill in town shut down leaving the community without an economic base and turning it into a bedroom community for surrounding areas. To some extent, the people there have used an exceptional football team as a central element that maintains a sense of community.
That being said, the entire case is outrageous and angers me at a very deep level. I know that I’m a cynical person and I have known that the news media slants things in whatever way they choose to slant it. This case was the first time I saw the slanting up close knowing that the way the case was being presented on the national news was just flat out not true.
I am compelled to write about this today because I saw an article that reports that Marcus Dixon is finishing up his college education and is hoping to get picked in the NFL Draft on Saturday.
I will pass on repeating everything that’s been written about Marcus Dixon and the incident that resulted in his being put in prison on a ten year sentence. He only served part of that sentence. His supporters claim that his accuser had claimed she was raped because she was afraid of her racist father when in fact it was consensual sex. She HAD claimed she was afraid to tell her father, but never claimed it was anything other than rape.
The facts that supported her claim of rape that are rarely, if ever, reported in the news are the fact that she was said to have been hospitalized following the attack on her at school because she was so badly beaten and torn as a result of the attack. From that perspective it didn’t have the appearance of a consensual act.
Another factor that supported the rape charge was that Marcus Dixon was alleged to have had incidents of sexual misconduct in the past. He was never charged and the incidents were not reported in the news reportedly because Marcus was a star football player. Do you think that sounds ridiculous? It does unless you know the mentality at that school. Football is everything there and a star player is well protected by his teachers, coaches and the administration of the school.
Two alleged incidents got him suspended from school for a total of 10 days. In March of his sophomore year, Dixon exposed himself in a classroom, and a year later he allegedly touched a 14-year-old girl inappropriately after track practice. Neither situation was reported to the Floyd County police despite his suspension.
The previous incidents weren’t reported because of the protection of his mentors. All of those people, as well as the adoptive parents of Marcus, jumped to his defense as soon as his behavior went too far for them to keep it under wraps. He had to face trial.
The first thing his defenders did was declare that it was an issue of race. Kristie Brown is white and Marcus is black. Kristie Brown’s father had made some racial statements. Even more incriminating, it happened in Georiga. It was a piece of cake to paint the entire incident as racially motivated and an attempt to keep a black boy from doing well by a bunch of white racists in a Southern town. After all, you know how we keep our black people down (that’s sarcastic - so don’t get all huffy on me!).
Bryant Gumbel came down and took Marcus’ part. He stood in front of an old raggedy barn with a huge Confederate flag painted on the side of the barn to do his report. I have been in that area a lot and have NEVER seen that barn. I have no idea how or where he managed to find a barn painted as a Confederate flag, but the visual point he was making was right there. This is the South and WE KNOW HOW THOSE RACIST SOUTHERNERS ARE!!! They will do anything to keep this gifted black boy from making it big.
The problem with that point is that there are a lot of gifted black people in the South who do quite well for themselves - so why did the entire State of Georgia line up to stand in the way of this particular black kid? Hmmm …. Its a mystery. But apparently we all stood in line to stand in the way of Marcus Dixon making it in football and getting to go to Vanderbilt University. It was a vast White Southern Conspiracy against Marcus Dixon. Meanwhile, please take a look-see at how many people at Vanderbilt or any other university are black and southern before you tell me that Southerners go out of their way to keep black people from being able to go to college. The accusation against the community was ludicrous and insulting. No one has every apologized for making such reckless accusations against the community.
Oprah Winfrey and Marcus Dixon (Photo)
Oprah Winfrey took up the cause of Marcus Dixon. The claim was that his ‘real crime’ was being black and having sex. That plays well with the rest of the country that thinks the South is full of characters straight out of Deliverance. The rest of the country eats that stuff up … and worse, they believe it. Oprah told Kristie Brown that Marcus had told her he forgave her.
Oprah: He says he forgives you.
Kristie: Forgives me? How could he forgive me if I didn’t do anything?
Oprah: What would you want to say to him if he were sitting here right now?
Kristie: I would want to know why he would even want to think about raping anybody.
At the height of the publicity of this incident there were rumors in town that Jesse Jackson was coming to town to stage a rally and march to protest the conviction of Marcus Dixon. His basic assumption appeared to be that the whites in the town were racist and keeping the blacks down and the blacks in the town were just too kept down to stand up for themselves. The black community insisted that Jesse Jackson stay out of town. They made it clear they didn’t want him here. One thing I heard frequently was that people were insulted that people seemed to think that Southern blacks were so ignorant and weak they couldn’t speak for themselves.
Did it ever occur to anyone to question whether or not MARCUS was lying? Did it ever occur to anyone that this girl who was badly beaten might be telling the truth? Apparently not. Her family ended up having to leave town because of threats against them. All the while, Marcus’ defenders claimed he was the one being threatened. Oddly, even with him being ’scared for his life’, when he was released from prison and returned to town he was given a big party. He went on to college on a football scholarship and now may get the opportunity to go on to play for the National Football League.
Please, tell me … who suffered from this incident? Who was the victim and who was the perpetrator? Who has gain notoriety and money from it? Who had to leave town due to threats on their lives? Who has been consistent in their story and who has had a history of writing off bad sexual behavior to the ever popular, ‘boys will be boys’.
There is a reason that the people in town were not as outraged about this as people from other parts of the country. Its a close community and people know the people involved. People here knew that the justice system had worked and that it wasn’t about race.
This entire case is NOT about race. Its about football. Pepperell High School in Lindale, Georgia is all about football. The football players there can and do get away with bad behavior. The students who are NOT involved in football there, in one way or the other, do not have the privilege of students who are involved in the sport. I’ve seen it up close and personal and I know it to be true. When a football player there is injured and is of no use to them anymore he is thrown into the heap with the other students who are not of value.
On the other hand, a football player that has the ability to play the game on a level that might draw the attention of universities and even someday the NFL is immune from consequences regardless of his behavior.
I once had a football coach at Pepperell High School tell me not to worry about my son’s grades or studying. I was told he’d get all A’s …. regardless. After all, he was breaking records for the school at the time and they had big plans for him. I protested and said I had big plans for him too. I wanted him to build his mind as well as his body. The coach looked at me as though he was confused. He said, ‘He’s breaking records, he doesn’t need to study. Don’t worry. We’ll make sure he makes A’s. We’ll take care of him.’
I suspect they took care of Marcus Dixon too.
Marcus Dixon (Video)
August 28th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
just happened to stumble on this website while trying to see if Marcus made it through the first round of cuts, but Being from the Lindale area I met the young man several times prior to the incident, he seemed to be a very decent guy. The previous conduct incidents referred to are typical with a lot of white boys in my class at Pepperell. The idea that teachers and staff protect athletes is not true. Other students were shown the same respet as athletes in my eperience and often accusations of athlete protections comes from a student or parent’s insecurities about grades or social success. I do know that many people locally judged the case to be racially motivated based on interviews from the lead investigator, but that seemed to come from the perception he lacked intelligence, that seems to happen when someone continues to repeat in interviews a high school senior having sex with a high school freshman is a major indicator of a pedophile. He also claimed Marcus would continue to fit the profile of a pedophile through out his life. since then marcus has graduated with a GPA above 3.5 and has no incidents of sexual misconduct. ESPN also reported the girl continues to live a Lindale working at a local grocery store, which despite my belief he was inocent, I believe was unfaire because there is only one grocery store in that town.
August 30th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
As an educator in a southern state, I have witnessed atheletes receiving preferential treatment in classrooms. HOWEVER, your commentary (based upon one’s opinion without citing credible and verifiable sources with the necessary reference notes for fact checking) is full of accusations. If, in fact this Southern Belle was raped and subsequently admitted into the hospital, where is the proof? You provided a video (that obviously does not directly relate to this story) of Marcus having fun but you lack proof of a hospital admittance or photographs taken by investigative authorities showing any evidence of a “beating”. Where are the references to credible and well-known media outlets to back your allegations that he has a history of this type of behavior. Reporters are well versed at locating sources that the average person cannot. Surely at least one reporter has uncovered someone to say these things happened. This type of proof would at least place a sense of “perhaps it happened” in the mind of society.
Both of these people have been affected by the events of that one night. However, moving on in life with a forgiving spirit and a God-given purpose is what they both should focus upon.
Instead of your attempts to bash Marcus, why not celebrate the accomplishments of this young woman as a survivor of at the very minimum media scrutiny and ridicule. Survivors of rape find it important to be able to move on and declare themselves no longer victims by telling their stories of survival and triumph. Maybe YOU can champion Kristie’s life by helping and guiding her to move from victim to advocate. Life is full of injustices. Either we choose to be eternal victims or we choose to be victors. Life is too short to continue to look backwards but should be celebrated and lived moving forward. Apparently, MARCUS DIXON has done so by overcoming obstacles whether they were self-inflicted or society-inflicted.
GOD BLESS MARCUS AND KRISTIE
September 4th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
Beth,
I also have personal knowledge of this case and I’m so thankful that you are keeping the facts out there. It’s so sad that Kristie has been turned into the violent one. It’s amazing to me that so many people have made negative comments toward you when they have no first hand knowledge of the case. I know in my heart that it will all come out int he wash. I just hope he doesn’t go on to rape anyone else and even worse several others.
September 4th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
Also, in reference to “A Southern Teacher” the reason why the school was found to be negligent was due to the proof that they had not reported his previous behavior to law enforcement as protocol. In order to not release names because people have been threatened with their jobs if they speak of the matter, I’ll just say there was a lot of proof. Court records are a part of public record and can be requested. They would be found in the trial against the school system, not the trial about the rape. The girls medical records are private as are all medical records.
I’m not trying to be snappy with you I just know the case very, very well.
September 5th, 2008 at 6:18 am
Thanks Angela,
I have actually gotten to where I rarely read the comments to this post because they have been so hostile. I appreciate your input and your willingness to speak out.
September 5th, 2008 at 9:06 am
I can understand you not wishing to be subjected to the archaic ignorance of so many. It’s funny that people can’t just admit they really don’t know what happened. I see a lot of comments that seem to be right out of the “good ole boy” network. It’s hard for me to watch Oprah anymore. I think deep down she is a great person who contributes greatly to the community. However, after she was so quick to jump on this case and believe it was all based on race, I no longer believe that her show represents an unbiased point of view. You would think based on her own experience of sexual abuse she would have at least just kept her distance from this case since she obviously couldn’t have known for sure all the details involved.
I also know of three white men from the same community who served 10 years each for statutory rape and yet Marcus did not serve his 10 years. Even if people want to believe it was just a statutory issue, he still was found quilty of that. People with little knowledge of the court system don’t realize that a lot of things are dropped to lesser charges as part of a plea deal. The jury can only find a person guilty for something they are being charged for. They can’t say, well I know he is being charged for this but let’s just change it to something else. If they thought he was innocent they would have just found him not guilty.
And for the guy who said that all 16-17 year old males have exposed themselves in public, he may need some therapy because my background and degree in Psychology stress that public exposure is definitely an indicator of sexual deviant behavior. It just isn’t normal male behavior. Maybe in the animal kingdom or on National Geographic but not in “civilized society.”
Best wishes to you Beth. I know that you, like so many people involved in this are fighting the good fight. I don’t know if we ever met while I was in Rome but I was a volunteer with the Sexual Assault Center.
September 15th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Why don’t we talk about the fact that a teacher from this same high school was convicted of statutory rape for having sex with her daughter’s 14yr old boyfriend and (to my knowledge) never spent a day in prison. This woman was in her 30’s and had sex with a 14yr old child and was not sentenced to 10yrs in prison. She was also providing alcohol to minors at parties in her house.
http://services.georgia.gov/gbi/gbisor/SexualOffenderDetails.jsp?action=SexualOffenderDetails&sexualoffenderId=618655HB6
October 12th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
yall some dumbass fools if you think a black man can get caught with a consenting white hoe and not get accused of rape or anything else! that bitch is lying cause i`m a young black man from the same school and i had the bitch so i know she a lie
October 13th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Wow bigdaddy, apparently English wasn’t your strong point when you went to “the same school”.
I went to “the same school” as well and I’ve seen the administrators let the athletes get away with whatever they want. Most were drug addicts and criminals that hide behind their coaches for protection from the law. They had their own sort of corporal punishment. It’s not surprising to me to hear of an athlete raping a girl and more or less get away with it.
Also, for all the commenters who keep trying to paint the South as a haven for racist, clearly you are the true racest. “Danny” you were the best. You went to college in Atlanta and “ventured outside the city to experience the culture of the state”….I guess that makes you an expert. You should write a book my friend.
The true crime commented in this case isn’t rape, people are raped everyday in one way or the other, it’s reverse racism. That young criminal more or less got away with a violent sex crime that would have destroyed most other’s lives. Instead, he is going to be a hero. Whether or not he has “done his time” and is “reformed” is neither here nor there. One day our children will look at him as a “HERO” because of his athletic ability. Young men will aspire to be him. And all the while we should watch in terror knowing that we know he is a violent criminal and that we let him gain his status just because he is good at a simple game.
October 25th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Do you honestly believe this case would have been the same if both parties involved were white? What if the boy was white and the girl was black? I don’t believe she was raped. She was just a little girl scared of what her father would say or do. The real story is the teacher from the same school having sex with the 14 year old and only being convicted of statutory rape. Where is the justice in that??!!??