Because how can the GOAT Ronaldo ever rape a woman, despite her saying 'no' and 'stop'?

Cristiano Ronaldo is so many things; father, son, partner, friend, mentor, hero, celebrity, athlete, and now an alleged rapist. Fans all over the world are offended; how is it that the hero they have put on a pedestal is accused of such a heinous crime? Is this a conspiracy by Lionel Messi fan boys to drag down Ronaldo’s good name? His admirers have come together to show their loyalties and back their forever favourite.

In the midst of all this, I, a former Ronaldo fan, choose not to give him the benefit of the doubt. In cases of sexual assault, I will always believe the woman and in this case too, I choose to believe her.

According to an article published by Der Spiegel, Kathryn Mayorga was 25 when she met Ronaldo, 24 then, in Las Vegas in 2009. They were both at Rain, a nightclub in Palms Casino Resort, where their paths first crossed. She mentioned that he approached her and she recognised him since he was a very popular player. There are photos of the two, where Mayorga seems to be talking to Ronaldo and they both seem to be having a good time. According to her, Ronaldo asked her for her number, which she provided, before leaving the club to go to his penthouse suite at Hotel Palms Place nearby. He messaged her to come with her friends and join him there for a party. Accepting his invitation, she went to his penthouse with her friend, but Mayorga didn’t know she was entering the devil’s den.

https://twitter.com/derWinterbach/status/1046478115734720513

While in the bathroom and changing into something more appropriate for a jacuzzi, she found Ronaldo sneaking up on her. He pleaded her to touch his genitalia, and when she refused, he told her he would only let her go if she kissed him. Seeing no other way out, she agreed to kiss him, but that only made things worse. He did not let her leave the room, pushed her on the bed and raped her. She kept saying no repeatedly but that did not stop him from engaging in rape and sodomy.

When she tried to pursue the case and get justice, but her character was questioned and she was forced to settle. Ronaldo bought her silence for $375,000 by making her sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), but she couldn’t move on from the trauma. Now, with a better lawyer, a much more composed self, and a more accepting political climate in the wake of #MeToo, Mayorga has decided to take on the world’s most popular footballer.

Here’s alleged rape victim Kathryn Mayorga’s complaint against Cristiano Ronaldo, filed with the Clark County District Court https://t.co/xupnhJER25 pic.twitter.com/eeGSxDyxVX

— Mathieu von Rohr (@mathieuvonrohr) September 29, 2018

Ronaldo has denied the allegations and his fans are adamant to protect their legend. Social media is filled with disgusting remarks made towards Mayorga; people are calling her a gold digger, saying that she must have wanted it, and questioning how is it rape when they can see from the event’s pictures that she was really into him. There were many who went to the extent of questioning why Ronaldo would even need to rape anyone? The amount of hatred and victim-blaming on display has made me question everything.

It is so hard for us to grasp that someone we admire or care about could be a potential criminal. Yes, there are people who think clearly and want to wait for the investigation and verdict before they say anything about the case. That is a very smart thing to do. But while the case is being decided, I for one refuse to keep watching Ronaldo play like nothing happened. I refuse to slide away the thought that he was accused of raping someone, only to watch him play one last time. As someone who has been sexually abused in the past, I know how hard it is to come forward, and it is worse when no one believes you. Hence, my empathy, my support and my belief is not for the accused, it is for the woman who found the strength to finally speak up.

Of course, there are false accusers, but we would do well to remember that a woman accusing a man is almost always getting the worst end of the deal. Brett Kavanaugh, Ali Zafar, Donald Trump, Bill Cosby, Harvey Weinstein, Louis CK, and so many more men did not have to go through even a minute of the shame and gaslighting that their accusers had to go through.

Moreover, how do you even justify Ronaldo being innocent after looking at all the evidence? In a questionnaire he filled for his counseling team, he admitted that even though she didn’t scream, she did say ‘no’ and ‘stop’ several times. Was that not his cue to stop? Did saying ‘no’ have no significance in that ‘heated moment’? Was her consent not important?

https://twitter.com/derWinterbach/status/1046479131267993600

As time goes by, it is evident that consent is an alien topic for men. What even constitutes as consent anymore? From a woman blinking in their direction to a woman smiling from afar, everything seems to be a signal for men. Is it that consent itself is something very hard to understand, or are men clearly ignoring the concept because they are having ‘too much fun’? Since Mayorga is seen smiling and dancing with Ronaldo, people believe she has apparently automatically given her consent to him. Her saying no later, is seemingly not fair to poor, lustful Ronaldo!

Moreover, if he is not guilty, why would he make her sign an NDA? Back in 2009, I am pretty sure he could not have predicted the wake of #MeToo. Then why did he try so hard to hide something that according to him is ‘fake news’? He recently went on Twitter to deny the allegations and said that his “clear conscious will allow him to wait the results of a full investigation”. Assuming he meant conscience and not conscious, did his integrity, nine years ago, allow him to make the woman sign an NDA such that she could not even mention his name to her therapist?

I firmly deny the accusations being issued against me. Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in. Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense.

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) October 3, 2018

My clear conscious will thereby allow me to await with tranquillity the results of any and all investigations.

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) October 3, 2018

I used to admire him, I remember tearing up when he left Real Madrid and now when I look back, I am disgusted because unknowingly, I was fan-girling over an accused rapist. An investigation will hopefully take place but I don’t expect any fruitful results. He is a powerful man and an ordinary woman will never be able to defeat that kind of privilege.

It is true, I am neither the judge nor the jury, but I am a woman who is infuriated, I am a former fan who is deeply hurt, I am a human being who is absolutely disgusted and there is no going back anymore. People need to realise that their heroes are capable of falling from grace; they are capable of evil because at the end of the day, they are also ordinary human beings. Rape is the worst form of violation, but it only exists because we know people are capable of that much. Then why is it so hard for us to think that even Ronaldo could be capable of it? The footballer that he was, managed to earn our respect, but the man we now know him to be, has lost it all.