R Kelly survivor says ‘our work isn’t done’ as disgraced singer given thirty-year sentence

A survivor of R Kelly’s abuse has spoken out after the disgraced singer was sentenced to thirty years in prison on Wednesday (28 June).

In a new interview, Lisa Van Allen said Kelly’s sentencing is “just the beginning” and that “our work isn’t done”, addressing other survivors of sexual abuse.

Van Allen met Kelly – full name Robert Sylvester Kelly – on the sets of one of his music videos when she was 17. During their complicated sexual relationship, she said, Kelly coerced her into making a sex tape with a 14-year-old who Van Allen believed was 16.

Van Allen appeared as a witness in the 2008 trial against Kelly and was also a part of Lifetime’s Surviving R Kelly documentary.

The documentary was released in 2019 and gave survivors a platform to share their stories such that the abuse allegations that have followed Kelly around for years such couldn’t be ignored any longer.

Speaking toVariety after the singer’s sentencing, Van Allen said “it only seemed fit” Kelly was handed a three-decade-long sentence since “he preyed on young girls and boys for over thirty years”.

“Reflecting back on the trial in 2008, I’m so proud to see how far we have come 14 years later,” Van Allen continued, adding, “It brings me nothing but joy to know that I am, and will continue, to be part of the solution.”

Kelly was charged with 21 counts of making child pornography in 2002 but was acquitted by a Cook County jury when the case went to trial in 2008.

“I am thankful for everyone that let us be heard. I do it for anyone who feels voiceless – know that you are not alone. We aren’t victims. We are survivors. Our work isn’t done, this is just the beginning,” Van Allen also told the publication.

The executive producer of the Peabody-winning docuseries, in which Van Allen detailed the abuse she suffered at the hands of Kelly, Jesse Daniels “acknowleged the bravery of the women for sharing their stories” and said they were “heroes”.

Kelly, 55, was convicted on nine charges in 2021. These included racketeering and violating the Mann Act, which prohibits the interstate transportation of women and girls for “any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offence”.

At the sentencing, US District Judge Ann Donnelly said she would have handed down the sentence regardless of sentencing guidelines since “the public has to be protected from behaviours like this”.

She also noted that Kelly’s crimes were “calculated and carefully planned and regularly executed for almost 25 years”.

“You taught them that love is enslavement and violence,” Judge Donnelly added.

If you have been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support. For more information, visit their website here.