Little People, Big World star Jacob Roloff emerges with a “traumatic memory” of sexual abuse by a producer from the TLC reality series.
In a lengthy Instagram post Tuesday, Roloff claimed he was harassed by former producer Chris Cardamone while starring in “Little People, Big World” with his family.
“It is often much easier to think about things than to talk about them, which is why this disclosure has been delayed, but through that delay I have found the power and the words,” Roloff, 23, wrote. “As a child, after what I now realize was a long grooming process, I was assaulted by an executive producer of ‘Little People, Big World’.”
Although Roloff said he does not intend to “give details of this meeting,” the child star said he hopes Cardamone will “never be admitted to children again.”
USA TODAY was unable to find a representative for Cardamone.
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In a statement to USA TODAY, TLC said it just learned of the “alleged meeting that took place years ago with a third party related to the production of ‘Little People, Big World.'”
“We are saddened and troubled by this very serious allegation, and TLC will cooperate with the authorities,” the statement read. “Our main focus remains supporting the Roloff family in this very difficult time.”
Roloff is the youngest child of Amy and Matt Roloff, who both have dwarfism.
He appeared with his parents and siblings – twins Zach, 30, Jeremy, 30, and Molly, 27 – on “Little People, Big World.” Roloff was only nine when the series premiered in 2006. “Little People, Big World” is now in its 21st season.
Roloff said his alleged experience shows that “sexual assault, in all its iterations, can happen to anyone at any time and is a much more common reality than our current social stigma allows us to talk about.”
He added that he did not speak out earlier because “a child has to deal with it” with “silence and time”.
In his post, Roloff likened reality television to ‘voyeurism’ and questioned the consequences of growing up for millions of viewers, week after week.
“I continue my own contemplation on the voyeurism involved in the whole endeavor of reality television – a tremendous spectacle of drama and pain and quarrels and invasion, sprinkled with a little joy, that completely disconnect viewers from the complex people. in the simplistic look ‘characters’ they see on TV,’ Roloff said.
He continued, “The winnings were sweet indeed. The actual experience was more complicated.”
Roloff concluded his message by emphasizing that “all the blame lies with the predator” and that “no fault is with my relatives.”
“I am sure this is a positive moment for me and another step towards a brighter future,” he wrote.
Roloff married Isabel Sofia Rock in September 2019 at his family’s Roloff Farms near Portland, Oregon.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jacob Roloff: ‘Little People, Big World’ star says he was abused