It’s no secret that Britney Spears’s journey to end her conservatorship has been a very long one. After a dreadful 13 years, the court made an unprecedented move last July 14: It finally allowed her to hire her own attorney.
Having gained steam, Spears’s battle against her abusers, including father Jamie Spears, is now expected to lean on a more aggressive approach with Mathew Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor, being confirmed as her new attorney. Britney has since then received much support as well. From fans and co-artists leading the #FreeBritney movement to lawmakers from Capitol Hill, many are celebrating a week’s worth of victory for Spears’s case.
Ever since her heyday as a pop star during the early 2000s, Spears has been subjected to vitriolic public and media attention that ultimately cost her her own mental health. In 2008, she was put under immediate conservatorship, which allowed her father to seize control of her finances, health, personal life, as well as businesses and properties, including her music.
Spears called it a traumatizing and abusive experience, and one that she has been fighting for so long. “I’ve been in shock. I am traumatized… I’m not happy. I can’t sleep. I’m so angry it’s insane. And I’m depressed. I cry every day,” Spears said in a public court hearing less than a month ago in the plea to be granted her own attorney of choice.
Spears also says she won’t be performing as long as her father continues to take hold of her. In an Instagram post calling out both her father and sister, she wrote, “My so-called support system hurt me deeply !!!! This conservatorship killed my dreams … so all I have is hope .” She then proceeded to call out the documentaries and media channels that have been bringing up what she calls “humiliating moments from the past.”
As we continue to root for Spears in what we hope is the start of many wins, let’s be sensitive. This has a mental and emotional toll on Spears, her kids, and the people that support her. The least we could do is to not forget that she’s just a woman fighting to live her own life.
Photo screengrabbed from the “Slumber Party” music video
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