Tonya Harding matters to Oregon. Tonya, who suffered one of the first full blown attacks by the New 24-Hour News Cycle in America in the 1990s, was a supreme ice skating athlete. A tale of child abuse, domestic violence, classism, misogyny, and how easily too many in the public can be media-mind-controlled into being mocking-mad-mobs. Now the media's target is Donald J. Trump

First target in the history of the 24-hour news cycle was supreme athlete ice skating champ from Oregon Tonya Harding.

Recently, former Republican, Matthew J. Dodd, on social media mocked Representative Marjory Taylor Greene as being a "Tonya Harding" which brought Tonya back into the public square of social media which is often not social. Too many fall for the media's sensationalized hype by immediately joining in mob mocking. Both conservatives and liberals, did calling Tonya "white trash" among other names. Rep. Greene had worn a white coat to the State of the Union address and vocally commented on President's Biden's address.

 

 

 

 

 

The 2017 film I, Tonya starring Margot Robbie gave the most complete picture of a girl who survived childhood emotional and physical assaults, emotional and physical assaults, domestic violence by her first husband along with degradation by the corporate sports world for not fitting into their box.

Tonya in her second marriage, to Joe, is now a wife and mother to their son Gordon who is proud of his mom.  Tonya calls Joe her "...first miracle" and their son her second miracle.

Children, isolated, with no enlightened witness don't know they are being abused. When that pattern plays out in marriage, they still don't know of the connection to the original abuse.

Kid Tonya found something to love, a skill to develop, to focus on that kept her going. Ice skating. Then the powers that were, the media, corporate sports and the political world took it away from her.

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The film script was developed from the interviews done by the director of Tonya's and Jeff's take on the events that unfolded early to mid-1990s.

(167) Tonya Harding & Margot Robbie: 'I, Tonya' & a Love of Skating | THR - YouTube

Skater Nancy Kerrigan was attacked by a hit man, Shane Stant, hired by Tonya's husband and his friend Shawn Eckhart. Shane never heard any converation that indicated Tonya knew.

Tonya was charged with hindering prosecution, not assault. Placed on probation and stripped of everything including never being able to skate in competition ever again. 

In the same time period in the 1990s Heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, convicted of rape, went to prison, Tyson resumed his boxing career when he got out.

Which characteristic of Tonya's life did the powers-that-be out in the media, corporate sports or political world react to the most, which held the most sway in bringing down the hammer hard on Tonya?

Being an abused child?

Being a woman?

Being from the wrong side of the tracks?

Racism didn't stop Tyson for continuing his boxing career. Tonya plead guilty to "hindering prosecution".  Not rape, not assault. Since Tyson was also an abused child and from the wrong side of the tracks...did the woman part hold the most biased sway?

Are some on the Left and on the Right still willingly taking shots at a woman who survived even as that Trifecta of power, the media, corporate world and politicians took the thing away from Tonya that helped her survive? The kids who have had her kind of abusive up-bringing who survive the longest are those who fought back, and who had an enlightened witness along the way giving them information of what abuse looked like.

 

The film I, Tonya brought brought out the more complete look at the story, brought renewed understanding, and some new life as Tonya was invited and she danced on Dancing with the Stars. Tonya's husband and son, Gordon, were in attendance.

As Margot Robbie says as Tonya at the start of the movie, "I am a real person."  Tonya described to Ru Paul her first miracle was her husband, Joe then the second their son Gordon.  Her father had taken this picture. She lost her father a year before she met Joe.

  

 

 

 

 (177) RuPaul Shares the Photo That Brought Tonya Harding to Tears - YouTube

 

What the media did to Tonya Harding they've been now hired, assigned and revved up for years to do the same to President Donald J. Trump. 

February 10, 2023