Former Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman and Full House actress Lori Loughlin have previously been known first and foremost for their roles in these popular television series.
But since news broke that both women have been arrested on fraud charges that allegedly link them to a college application cheating scam, this absolutely wild story outshines the TV fame for sure.
Huffman is accused of donating $15,000 (AU$21k) to a firm for the service of helping her daughter cheat on college entrance exams. Huffman’s husband, fellow-A-list-actor William H. Macy, was not charged or named in the documents, although transcripts of incriminating phone calls allegedly involve both Huffman and her “spouse.”
Loughlin and her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, are accused of agreeing to bribe $500,000 (AU$706k) to have their two daughters designated as recruits to USC’s crew team and therefore help get them a college spot. Except neither of them actually participated in crew.
The long and short of it is that both women are accused of using money to get their kids un-earned spots at prestigious universities. But this is not just two celebrities allegedly being entitled brats, this is a nation-wide scam that the FBI has uncovered, featuring a lot of people being entitled brats.
Lori and Felicity were definitely the appetizers. This meal is about to last several courses.
— Eric Haywood (@EricHaywood) March 12, 2019
Huffman and Loughlin were among 50 people indicted by federal authorities as part of the U.S.-wide scheme, according to documents unsealed on Tuesday. The paperwork suggests wealthy parents have been bribing exam administrators or athletics coaches with cash sums to help secure places for their kids at elite colleges, including Yale, Georgetown, and Stanford University, regardless of their abilities.
It was called a ‘nationwide conspiracy’ in the official press release issued by prosecutors at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts, which is a pretty apt name for the class system in action I guess.
So actresses Lori Loughlin, Felicity Huffman and others used white Affirmative Action to bribe their kids thru college.
Is this what you all mean by “pulling yourselves up by your bootstraps?”
— Tariq Nasheed ?? (@tariqnasheed) March 12, 2019
Rich parents using their richness to secure educational opportunities for their children is an extremely cliché example of how privilege and entitlement plays out behind closed doors. Handing children of wealth these opportunities is taking away those opportunities from others who have actually earned them.
When the system of scholastic opportunity is corrupt instead of equitable, it reinforces the class and privilege gap that keeps the rich rich and the poor poor. It’s a serious crime and deserves to be taken seriously.
Why are people saying this Aunt Becky and Felicity Huffman news isn’t a big deal?
These students took spots in those colleges from hard working people who deserved to get in. It’s so typical for people to write off white collar crime.
— Denizcan James (@MrFilmkritik) March 12, 2019
Felicity Huffman, William H. Macy, Lori Laughlin, and the parents of Jared Kushner spent millions to get their incompetent kids into places like Harvard through cheating and bribery. I graduated from Stanford with honors and Duke Med to be called incompetent by a racist society.
— Eugene Gu, MD (@eugenegu) March 12, 2019
Huffman, Loughlin and the other accused individuals allegedly scamming the university system is the kind of wild story that should make a great movie someday soon, that will hopefully shame the exploitation of privilege for opportunity. Also hopefully Laura Dern will play Felicity Huffman. We’ll be waiting.