Joan Jett is responding to Jackie Fuchs’s allegations about Kim Fowley. All played key roles in the success of renowned rock group The Runaways, featuring Joan. However, Jackie, who was the group’s bassist, is now alleging that Kim, who managed and founded the group, raped her , reported Entertainment Weekly .
Moreover, Fuchs revealed that as Fowley attacked her, members of the band including Joan observed the rape. Jackie cites Kim’s abuse as the cause both of her departure from the music world and the female band’s breakup.
Known on stage as Jackie Fox, Fuchs detailed a party that took place when she was only 16. Held on New Year’s Eve in Orange County, the party occurred following a lively show put on by The Runways. But as they all partied, Jackie was handed Quaaludes.
Fuchs then claims that Kim questioned one of the roadies about whether he wanted to have intimate relations with Jackie.
“You don’t know what terror is until you realize something bad is about to happen to you and you can’t move a muscle,” recalled Jackie. “I can’t move. I can’t speak. All I can do is look him in the eye and do the best I can do to communicate: please say no … I don’t know what it looked like from the outside. But I know what was going on inside and it was horror.”
In Fuchs’ memory, she was unconscious at times prior to the rape. However, eyewitnesses revealed that they did see the attack.
“I remember opening my eyes, Kim Fowley was raping me, and there were people watching me,” said Jackie.
Of those observers, Fuchs charged that Joan Jett and Cherie Currie were watching the entire time, a claim that Joan’s spokesperson said was not true.
In 2010, a film depicting The Runaways featured Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett, Dakota Johnson as Currie, and Michael Shannon as Fowley. However, Fuchs declined to allow her story to be told.
Joan has released a formal statement on Jackie’s claims, reported People .
“Anyone who truly knows me understands that if I was aware of a friend or bandmate being violated, I would not stand by while it happened,” said the 56-year-old rock star. “For a group of young teenagers thrust into ’70s rock stardom there were relationships that were bizarre, but I was not aware of this incident. Obviously Jackie’s story is extremely upsetting and although we haven’t spoken in decades, I wish her peace and healing.”
In addition to Jett, Cherie Currie is responding to Jackie’s allegations , reported Jezebel .
Cherie also supported Jett’s comments.
“All I can say is if Joan, Sandy, and I saw an unconscious girl being brutally raped in front of us, we would have hit him over the head with a chair,” wrote Currie.
As the Inquisitr reported, Joan Jett recently was honored as legends such as Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono showed their love with a standing ovation at the 2015 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
“To see the room stand up like that and applaud to that degree was pretty amazing. I was trying to not bawl, because unless you could see how people just did not think girls could play rock and roll,” Joan recalled of her past.
[Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images]