We are all active participants in what’s known as The Social Contract. It’s a predetermined set of rules and ideals that everyone promises to live by and uphold. Step outside the constraints of the contract or break a rule and you go to jail.
At least, that’s how it’s supposed to work. But the truth of the matter is that if you have money or celebrity status, you can manage to get away with a lot. Take for instance Lori Loughlin’s return to acting after the recent College Admissions Scandal and see what I mean.
Lori Loughlin is an actress and TV producer.
Over the course of her career, Lori has made appearances in countless feature films and TV shows. Her breakout role was playing Aunt Becky on the smash sitcom Full House and Lori also reprised her role for the Netflix reboot Fuller House .
Lori is also well known for her role as Abigail Stanton in the period series When Calls the Heart . It’s a romance/drama about a young woman who leaves behind the trappings of wealth and the big city to be a school teacher in a midwest coal mining town.
Unfortunately for Lori, these days she’s largely known for being infamous rather than famous.
Back in 2019, Lori and her husband were active participants in what would later become known as the College Admissions Scandal . This was a nationwide criminal conspiracy geared at getting rich kids into elite schools.
Parents, many of whom were celebrities, would make “donations” ranging anywhere from $300,000 – $500,000 in order to bypass entrance exams. High-ranking school officials were then bribed, and the money was laundered in an attempt to conceal the source.
Rather than risk a trial, Lori agreed to take a plea deal.
Lori agreed to plead guilty to the conspiracy charge and admitted to paying scandal “mastermind” Rick Singer $500,000 in order to get both of her daughters into USC. As part of her deal, Lori was fined and given a 2-month sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California.
Her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, plead guilty to the conspiracy charge as well and was given a 5-month sentence. Giannulli was also forced to pay a fine of $250,000.
In December of 2020, Lori was released from prison.
The judge mandated that Lori is to be on a supervised release for the next two years and must perform a minimum of 100 hours of community service. But aside from that, her life is pretty much back to normal.
So normal, in fact, that Lori has even begun acting once again. It has now been confirmed that Lori Loughlin will be reprising her role as Abigail Stanton in the second season of the When Calls a Heart spinoff series — When Hope Calls: A Country Christmas .
The two-part Christmas special is set to premiere on December 18th, 2021.
The news has many people confused, especially considering Hallmark’s previous statement wherein they expressed they would be no longer working with Lori Loughlin. However, fans as well as show producer Brian Bird are quite literally chomping at the bit for Lori to return.
“Some of the fans have asked what will happen to Abigail’s character and shared their opinion that Hope Valley should be an example of forgiveness and grace,” Bird explained to FromTheDesk . “As Lori’s friend, I could not agree more, and Hope Valley will always be a place of second chances.”
Others, however, aren’t as eager to forgive and are quick to call out the hypocrisy of Loughlin returning to work.
Twitter user @NorrinR06303580 said that “It’s effing disgusting they’re putting this woman back on TV after screwing more deserving students out of a lifetime opportunity to attend a prestigious school.”
Others were wondering how Lori was even legally allowed to work again, considering she now had a criminal record. “ah the elite don’t live by the same rules,” Twitter user @didihtown lamented. “Any other normal person would struggle after doing prison time.”
Many were also quick to call out the unfairness of Lori’s celebrity privilege and all that it entails.
“The issue isn’t her going back to work because who wouldn’t,” Twitter user @justtrawstTrent asked rhetorically. “The issue is that she faced no real repercussions and her privilege had her job waiting for her with a bow on it.”
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We must always remember that the value of education is derived from hard work and determination — not from money and power. Our societal integrity is all we have at the end of the day and it’s something that we should all strive to collectively uphold.
Regardless, everyone has their own thoughts and opinions on the matter!
