It’s no secret that the hot topic on every one’s mind, from talk show Wendy Williams, mainstream media and your family members, is Britney Spears and the #FREEBRITNEY movement.
If you’re one of the few people that have been living under a rock for the past 30 years or so, Britney Spears is one of the biggest pop culture icons of all time.
Similar to the likes of Madonna, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe, Britney Spears, from her childhood years starring on the Mickey Mouse Club (if you didn’t know she was on a TV show with Ryan Gosling, Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera click here) has been a pinnacle of artistry paving the way for young females that arrive to the Hollywood party after her.
However, besides the catchy tunes, the scandalous music videos and the enigmatic aura that she continues to exude with her pop stardom legacy, Britney Spears has been prevalent recently for reasons that one can experience, “pop star” or civilian.
This Support Space article is here to tell you that even the biggest stars in the world can face similar challenges as you.
TW: This Article will discuss domestic violence, particularly, financial domestic violence and familial abuse. If there are any struggles raised in this support piece that relate to you we encourage you to seek the relevant support available to you. If you are comfortable, keep reading.
What is the #FreeBritney movement?
The Free Britney (or #FreeBritney) movement is a public movement, predominantly amongst fans and the greater, “virtual” world, that has the aim of providing Britney with autonomy from her ongoing conservatorship which began after her most-publicised “breakdown” of 2007 – 2008.
If pop culture and celebrity fandom is not your “thing”, Britney experienced a heavily publicised media sh*tstorm in 2007 – 2008 focusing on her perils of becoming a new mother in the lights of Hollywood.
Motherhood is not easy.
I’m not sure about you, and I’m not a Mother myself, but I come across clients every day who find the transition to motherhood a journey full of uncertainty, stress and depression.
Parenthood is something that understandably, can be a difficult transition period for many. Each person experiences this adjustment in different ways.
Imagine if life, just how you knew it, was instantly subverted because of another living being that popped outside of you that suddenly you need to raise, feed and grow, many times, on your own or with little assistance from others.
Now imagine that with your constant move surveilled and watched by the public gaze, every single minute.
Every. Single. Minute.
On television screens, news channels, Youtube, on the stage, on magazine covers, by other so-called “critics” who mind you, should not even be critiquing your parenting style in the first place.
The reason why I raise this is because Britney is rumoured to have fallen victim to Post Natal Depression. Post Natal Depression, or PND, is the term given to depression that developments after the birth of a baby. It affects about 1 in every 7 women who give birth in Australia every year.
For more information on Post Natal Depression, visit the organisation PANDA’s website here.
After Britney gave birth to her first child, Britney who was reported to have been experiencing PND at the time, was forced to have every facet of her parenting style criticised by mainstream media, assisted by the mass paparazzi bombarde that she had to endure, simply due to her celebrity status.
Britney was also in the middle of a separation with her then-husband, Kevin Federline.
The divorce was highly publicised and Britney was plastered on the front of numerous magazine covers for her “slip-ups” including tripping over a footpath with her son in her arms (surrounded by paparazzi) and driving with her child in her lap in her car (again, snapshotted by paparazzi).
Soon after, Britney began to experience the perils of fame, having her every move exploited by the media in an attempt to cancel her, including, dying her hair black (who knew this would be such a bad thing?), shaving her head (again, it’s her hair), fumbling on the MTV VMAS stage during her performance of her Blackout debut single, Gimme More (immediately after being ridiculed by the HOST on stage) and her infamous breakdown wherein she locked herself in a bathroom with her children crying with an ambulance collecting her from her Los Angeles residence and placing her on a psychiatric hold.
Yes, the paparazzi were outside her home at the time and there are pictures of Britney on a stretcher. That in itself is highly concerning.
After being placed on a psychiatric hold, Britney’s father, Jamie Spears, who undoubtedly and publicly stated by Britney herself, had minimal existence in Britney’s life prior to 2007, filed with the Californian Courts to be Conservator of Britney’s person and estate.
What does this mean?
In the United States, conservatorship is the appointment of a guardian or a protector by a judge to manage the financial affairs and/or daily life of another person due to old age or physical or mental limitations. This would make Britney the “conservatee” and her father the “conservator”.
The closest thing to a conservatorship in the Australian law would be an Enduring Power of Attorney for financial affairs and an Enduring Guardianship for personal affairs.
Anyhow, Britney consented to this on the premise that it was temporary. Jamie Spears might very well have feared for Britney’s life, as anyone would in such a circumstance, and decided that this was the best intervention method. This is a point of argument amongst many individuals, Britney fans or legal professionals. It’s no doubt however, that Britney’s transition to parenthood and suffering from Post Natal Depression was exacerbated greatly by the mass paparazzi presence that she endured at the time.
Leaked Court documents have illuminated that Britney was placed under the conservatorship due to “dementia”.
This then ignited a period of transition for Britney – from falling pop star and “bad mother” close to the brink of death to a comeback that would signify her phoenix-like rising from the ashes.
After the conservatorship was in place, Britney was forced to work hard to reclaim her comeback. Less than a year later, Britney was back in the media with her new album “Circus” and accompanying music videos such as Womanizer (which hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 1000), album-single Circus, If U Seek Amy and Radar, the critically-acclaimed, worldwide Circus tour and significant media appearances all over the world.
Less than a year later after being placed in a psychiatric hold, Britney was forced to be plastered on the very same medium that created her downfall.
There is actually a leaked audio of a phone call that Britney made soon after the conservatorship was ordered, wherein she raised concern as to the impact of the conservatorship on her “custody” with her children.
It is my understanding that Britney, who did not want a life of fame but rather sought a life of motherhood, simply consented to the conservatorship to continue seeing her children.
Britney, continuing to be under the impression that such a conservatorship was necessary but temporary, released more albums, engaged in media appearances, entered into a multi-million dollar contract with X Factor and embarked on a Las Vegas residency with her somewhat-biographical Las Vegas residency, “Piece of Me”.
Britney continued to be under a conservatorship for 13 years monitoring her every move. She was not provided the capability to sign contracts, her father could do that on her behalf. Britney, whose estate would earn millions of dollars each year, was provided with a miniscule budget per week only whilst the balance would be allocated to her conservatorship and management team.
This was all whilst Britney was still enthralled in a long legal battle with the father of her children, Kevin Federline.
The conservator, Britney’s father, was then issued with a restraining order against Britney’s children due to an assault that occurred at the hand of Britney’s father. Due to Britney’s father being Britney’s “guardian” in the legal sense, this significantly abrogated Britney’s ability to see her children and thus, she was only allowed to spend supervised time (not by Jamie of course) with her kids. She experienced a significant reduction in her time with the children to only 30%.
All whilst this is happening, Britney is on the stage in Las Vegas, not permitted to leave her room and only having done so on about two occasions during her three year stint, earning millions for her handlers, not for herself. Rather, Britney is stuck in a room all day, not able to see her children due to the consequences of others.
Britney, who is now vocalising her intention to have the conservatorship removed, is supported by a plethora of fans and other civilians who are advocating for her freedom. Hence, the #FreeBritney movement.
The #FreeBritney movement has engaged in protests, marches and law-reform outbursts for all those, just like Britney who suffer from conservatorship and financial domestic violence.
Britney recently spoke to the Court, in front of Judge Penny who did not sign off on the proposed conservatorship revocation that Britney had requested almost three years ago, about the limitations of the conservatorship. The conservatorship does not allow Britney to even drive in her own car, choose her curtains, marry or reproduce given that an IUD was implanted into her which she had requested to be removed on multiple occasions, but such has not occurred.
The #FreeBritney movement is more than just a celebrity obsession, it is about the civil liberties that one should have regardless of earning capacity, gender, age or mental health status.
What is financial abuse?
The Family Law Act, at s4AB, recognises financial abuse as a form of domestic and family violence:
(g) unreasonably denying the family member the financial autonomy that he or she would otherwise have had; or
(h) unreasonably withholding financial support needed to meet the reasonable living expenses of the family member, or his or her child, at a time when the family member is entirely or predominantly dependent on the person for financial support;…
Given the definition mentioned above, financial abuse can encompass many of the following:
Restriction to money or bank accounts
Having an allowance imposed on you that only meets basic living standards
A creation of financial dependency on one partner so that without them, you are unable to source, access or procure your own funds
Information around financial documents, balances or accounts are withheld
The act of pressure or duress to sign financial documents
Punitive measures around spending (or over-spending), saving and items purchased
The request for an explanation around every purchase
Restrictions on your ability to work (or not work)
The common thread amongst all these techniques is the exercising of control.
It’s important to know that coercive control can be exercised in a variety of ways.
Coercive control involve actions that are intended to intimidate a victim, including tactics utilised to harm, punish or frighten the victim so that the perpetrator of coercive control asserts their authority over them.
Let’s now bring it back to Britney.
Britney’s conservator is exercising coercive control and financial abuse by undertaking the following:
Providing her with a minimal allowance despite her earning millions
Restricting access to her children
Not allowing her to choose her own lawyer, and having all doctors, attorneys and specialists “Court-appointed”
Forcing her to work against her will, including releasing more albums, undertaking more tours and joining X Factor
Pressuring her to sign contracts against her will
Punishing Britney if she does not comply
Whilst Britney is a celebrity and perhaps experiences these tactics on a “superstar” level, have you ever thought about how you are being controlled financially and economically? I’m sure it doesn’t differ, on a conceptual level, much greater than Britney, perhaps even more.
What can I take away from this?
What you can take away from this is that domestic violence can be perpetrated against you in a number of ways. It is not always as simple as physical domestic violence.
It is important for you, who might even have your mind controlled by another, to step back and realise that this is affecting you.
Even if you have an inkling that this is happening to you, please seek external support, guidance and advice.
More often than not, you don’t realise that the same, human struggles that you are experiencing as a big pop star are also affecting you.
If you need any further clarity, here is Britney’s music video, “Work B*tch”, filmed under the supervision of her father, released to inaugurate her Las Vegas residency, recorded against her will and utilising vocals that aren’t hers.
The lyrics speak for themselves.
If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the behaviours listed above or if you would like further advice on whether particular behaviour is economic abuse, click here and contact us. We are here to support you along every step of your separation journey.
If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the behaviours listed above or if you would like further advice on whether particular behaviour is economic abuse, please get in touch with us.
We are here to support you along every step of your separation journey.
Click here to schedule an Initial Strategy Session with the family at Kalpaxis Legal to get started on creating your own unique and bespoke separation pathway today.
Written by Collaborative, Family Lawyer, Stefano.
