Is ‘Big Brother’ Franchise Descending Into A Series Of Rape Dramas?
The hit television show Big Brother and it’s sister show, Celebrity Big Brother are no strangers to controversy. In the past Big Brothers producers have been accused of feeding contestants alcohol to try to promote fights, arguments and inappropriate behavior on the show. Producers have been accused of creative editing to sensationalize the show and to create tension amongst Big Brother contestants.
Sexual action between Big Brother contestants is a key element in keeping audiences engaged with the voyeuristic show, which shows the housemates locked into the “Big Brother House” for weeks on end. Big Brother has a history of sexual assault allegations being made by contestants. In 2007 The Week reported that Big Brother Africa was won by a 24-year-old student who stood accused of raping a housemate after a night of heavy drinking. The contestant who alleged that she had been raped was the runner up.
In 2012 Big Brother Brazil was rocked by a rape allegation. Police were called when one of the contestants in the country’s Big Brother show claimed to have been raped by another housemate while unconscious and drunk.
The Daily Mail is claiming that Big Brother in South Africa has been rocked by yet another rape allegation this week. Siyanda Ngwenya, known as Adams, allegedly raped housemate, Axola Mbengo, while she was asleep after a drunken night of partying in the house in Johannesburg.
The couple were filmed kissing and cuddling in bed in the Big Brother house before cameras moved away. Ngwenya reportedly boasted to housemates the next day that he had sex with the woman saying that “I dipped her but don’t think she remembers because she passed out”.
According to the Mirror, Mbengo told other female Big Brother contestants that she had not consented to sex.
As a result of the allegations Big Bother producers took action by removing Ngwenya from the house. In a statement a spokesperson for the channel that airs Big Brother in South Africa said “At this stage, it is not exactly clear what transpired between Mbengo and Adams.”
“Having suspected that there may have been an incident of sexual misconduct, Mzansi Magic acted by removing both individuals from the house.”
Mbengo has been removed from the house “for her own well-being”. It is unclear at present if charges have been filed. This latest incident has caused uproar on social media with many people calling for Big Brother to be cancelled. Big Brother‘s producers have been accused of standing by whilst these incidents take place for the sake of their viewing figures.
[Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images]
