The Docuseries “Room 2806: The Accusation” is Eye-Opening
By: Jeff Ehren
Tags: Metoo, Netflix, Television, Sexual Assault, Documentary

The Docuseries “Room 2806: The Accusation” is Eye-Opening

In 2011, Nafissatou Diallo alleged that Dominique Strauss-Khan (DSK) had sexually assaulted her at the Sofitel in New York. According to RAINN, an American is sexually assaulted every 73 seconds. So, why do a docuseries on this case? It is because DSK was the president of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and a candidate for the next president of France.

The opposites

DSK is a rich, powerful and well-connected white male.

Diallo is a single mother who is struggling, an immigrant and a black woman.

Men control the narrative of Diallo’s story.

A rich, devoted wife leads the team to save DSK’s image.

During the investigation, DSK was not asked any questions as to what happened.

Diallo was investigated by prosecutors who dove into her past and deemed her not to be a credible witness.

The French “libertine” image is presented as a “c’est la vie” lifestyle.

The justice system in the United States is demonized with the “perp walk.”

The older generation is more acceptable of certain behaviors.

The younger generation wants change and won’t stand for the archaic system.

Perspectives: all about her

A brilliant aspect to this docuseries is offering different perspectives to this case in a manner that makes it difficult to create one definitive opinion. This complexity is realistic and one reason why justice for sexual assault survivors has been such a struggle.

The DA’s office quickly focused on Diallo rather than the facts of the case. District Attorney investigator Robert Mooney concludes that Diallo was an uncredible witness:

“She’s the only witness to the event other than Strauss-Kahn, who says, ‘this didn’t happen like that. No force used, no coercion, nothing.’ That she did this willingly. It’s not good-faith prosecution to continue with a case that you know A, you can’t prove, an B, the person that is your only witness is an unreliable, not credible person.”

The DA’s office dropped the case.

Michael Osgood, the former NYPD Deputy Chief, concerning Mooney and his conclusion:

“[He] is a very good homicide detective, precinct detective, but he’s not a sexual assault investigator, he’s not a Special Victims detective. He wasn’t at the scene. He…he didn’t see the victim that day. He doesn’t have a full comprehension of the information that was flowing to us. So, each sexual assault victim has a different behavior. Some don’t report for ten years, some report right away. Some cry, some don’t cry. Some have no emotion to it. Some have full emotion to it. Some can ably give you a full rendition of what occurred, some give you fragments at a time. So, because of the complexity of the victimization, that you cannot judge the demeanor of a person to determine if the thing is valid or not.”

Perspectives: what about him?

DSK was not investigated by the prosecutors. However, his personal life was well known in France. His wives knew of his penchant for other women, and such a lifestyle was accepted — if not expected — of a powerful Frenchman.

Delrene Boyd, the Assistant to the IMF Director, said that the hardest thing she had to do in her career was write his resignation letter:

“We all have two sides. You can’t just take the good, ignore the bad. Or take the bad and ignore the good. That’s being very unfair to a person. So, this is a whole person. This is who he is.”

In response to his wife, Anne, flying to New York to be by his side: “Once again, standing by her man. I admire that.”

It is pointed out that the United States should understand a wife standing by her husband through such adversity. This perception is because Hillary Clinton stood by her husband, President Bill Clinton.

Too much to be acceptable

The New York case was not enough for people to stop supporting DSK. The allegations, including by Tristane Banon, did not sway people. It took another case in France for some people to retreat from DSK.

As DSK ran for president while at IMF, there were encounters set up for him wherever he went. He found himself in the middle of a pimping case that included The Hotel Carlton. The case was eventually thrown out, but the details to that case pushed some people away from supporting DSK.

His lawyer, Richard Malka, seems to have the perspective that one’s lifestyle is all relative:

“They said there was some…slightly violent behavior, but that’s all relative. Uh, it’s rather a lack of respect. Uh, but it’s a game and it’s consensual. And that’s part of sex.”

Mouina R., however, tells her story without revealing details. And yet, she gives a powerful retelling that may make viewers uncomfortable:

“He did something that…I don’t like. But he did it anyway. To me…saying no was out of the question…even though I was gesturing and crying.”

Anne Sinclair divorced DSK after the Hotel Carlton case.

Final word: CONSENT

The #MeToo movement is brought up several times in the docuseries. It must be pointed out that Tarana Burke started the movement in 2006. It is a credit to her and the spirit of the movement that it is recognized in France.

Tristane Banon spoke out and filed charges. This is partially because her mother first spoke out on her behalf. But then Banon gains the courage to become a voice a movement. She does point out the generational differences concerning perspectives after finding out her mother had relations with DSK:

“It was painful to think that if she was aware of his reputation, then why let her daughter go to an interview without warning her? That’s something that remains painful. I won’t get into private family matters, but my mom is not of the same generation.”

Mouina R. wasn’t surprised the Hotel Carlton case was thrown out. But she remains hopeful:

“It’s reassuring that when these cases…go public…it slows down the accused and puts a brake on their impulses…and maybe prevents them from doing it again. So, that makes it seem worth it.”

Diallo, after finding out about more cases against DSK: