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This is a bad week for Columbia University. First police took down a student-run drug ring, and now political science professor David Epstein, 46, has been charged with a single count of felony incest. Gawker reports that Epstein allegedly was in a "consensual sexual relationship" with his 24-year-old daughter for the last three years. (We'll wait for you to get that brain bleach.) The two had a history of sending each other sexts, and Epstein's marriage to a fellow poli-sci prof had recently ended. Epstein is now on administrative leave from the university and is not teaching. That had to be an awkward moment when the new professor took over his classes mid-semester.
The case brings the idea of "consensual incest" back into the spotlight. Last year, actress Mackenzie Phillips discussed her relationship with her late father, John Phillips, in her memoir, "High on Arrival," and introduced us to the term. The slightly-less-squicky term for consensual incestuous relationships is "genetic sexual attraction," and there are several sites on the Internet dedicated to discussing this taboo.
We wonder: Can anyone truly "consent" to having a sexual relationship with a parent or other older relative? The power differential seems too great.
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Monday 13 December
By Kat M.
If my dad ever wanted to enter a sexual relationship with me (and he NEVER would) my answer would be "Hell no." So if you can say no, then consent is something that can be granted or denied-- especially if you're an adult. Once you are no longer financially dependent on your parents, there is no irresistible form coercion a parent can apply to his/her child. There is emotional coercion, I agree, but that is not something unique to a parent-child relationship.
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Tuesday 14 December
By yasir
wait wait wait.. read sura e nissa in quran pak where list of relations those r prohibited to marry(sex) is present clearly. u cannot make sex with ur sister daughter etc..
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Wednesday 22 December
By Taylor
She was an adult...she could have said "NO".If he's arrested than she should be too.She was in on the act just as much as he was.
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Tuesday 21 December
By Evilbeagle
For the record, the mere mention of incest makes me want to take a Silkwood Shower before and after I lose my lunch. However, if two consenting adults are okay with this sort of relationship, it's no one's business. It doesn't require my approval or anyone else's, and should not have a place in the law books, because what consenting adults do behind closed doors is no one's business.
An adult has the power to say "No," and walk away, as with any other relationship. I don't buy that the coercion in an incest relationship is any different. Saying "yes" and regretting it only amounts to a bad decision.
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Wednesday 15 December
By selena
i think the age difference and him being her father makes for to much of a power-difference. it might be different if she'd have been adopted and they hadn't seen each other in 20 years. (he wouldn't *really* be her father)
and if it'd been her 20-something brother i would have no problem believing it to be fully consensual on both sides.
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