CONSENT is the foundation of a loving, romantic relationship between two people – but what happens when one of the parties can't verbally or physically allow or approve what's happening?
Tell Them You Love Me is the latest true crime documentary that explores themes like consent, racism, and ableism in the case made against former professor and disability advocate Anna Stubblefield and her student-slash-victim, Derrick Johnson.
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Who is Anna Stubblefield?
Anna Stubblefield, born Marjorie Anna McClenne, grew up in Plymouth, Michigan.
In high school, she was an honors student, wrote articles for her school newspaper, and played the title role in a theater production of The Diary of Anne Frank.
She followed in her parents' footsteps, both of whom trained in special education for their Ph.Ds.
As a teenager, she studied Braille and learned sign language, and as a young scholar, she began fighting for racial justice.
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In 1989, while still in college, she married Roger Stubblefield, a 24-year-old Black tuba player and classical composer.
The duo would have two children together – a son in 1995, and a daughter a few years later.
In 2000, she received her Ph.D. and became a central figure in Africana philosophy.
She was even the first and only white scholar to serve as the chairwoman of the American Philosophical Association’s Committee on the Status of Black Philosophers, as reported by the New York Times.
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For 11 years, she taught philosophy and ethics at Rutgers University's Newark campus.
In 2005, she published a novel: Ethics Along the Color Line, where she wrote: "I was raised to believe that I have the responsibility oftikkun olam, repairing the world."
By 2007, she began to argue that "a person's intellect — and the degree to which he or she is ‘‘disabled’’ — could be as much a social construct,as much a venue for tyranny, as race, gender or sexuality."
One of her students, John, had earned a master's degree in history and was on track to get his Ph.D.
John's brother, "DJ" aka Derrick Johnson, was a Black man with severe mental disabilities: he couldn't speak, suffered from cerebral palsy, and was unable to stand or move his body without help.
Anna began working with DJ—and his legal guardians, DJ's mother, "P", and brother, John—using facilitated communication.
Facilitated communication is "a technique that involves a person with a disability pointing to letters, pictures, or objects on a keyboard or a communication board, typically with physical support from a 'facilitator,'" as defined by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
The visits, which were first supervised, took place in Anna's office every other week.
They quickly became more and more frequent, with Anna meeting with DJ at his home for longer periods of time, without anyone else there to watch or care for him.
Within a few years, DJ had gone from being attributed to having the "mental capacity of a toddler," to taking college classes and "speaking" at conferences.
However, despite Anna making "significant" progress with DJ using facilitated communication, the techniques didn't work for his mother or brother.
‘‘I began to gradually be aware that I was having romantic feelings,’’ she would later testify, as reported by the New York Times.
‘‘I became aware of things when he wrote the essay. It wasn’t all that original — people who had had the same experience had said similar things — but with all the spelling mistakes, he had a way of putting things.’’
In March 2011, Anna recalls telling DJ how she felt – and him responding in kind.
‘‘He grilled me on how much I really loved him, how committed I was to him, how I felt about my husband,’’ Anna wrote in an account of their relationship.
Anna then recalls attempting a romantic – sexual – "relationship" with DJ multiple times before "succeeding."
On Memorial Day 2011, "they" –Anna and DJ – finally told his family about their "relationship."
Anna told the Johnson's that she and DJ were in love, and that she was planning on leaving her husband – and family –for him.
DJ's mother and brother, shaken, confused, angry –and most of all, fearful for DJ's safety – then reported Anna to the police.
Where is Anna Stubblefield now?
In 2013, Anna Stubblefield was charged with two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault.
The court ruled that they would not be allowing any evidence submitted regarding facilitated communication, as the process "was not recognized by science," as reported by Yahoo News.
Anna testified that the duo's romantic and sexual relationship was consensual, despite DJ's lack of ability to communicate without her help or "facilitation."
DJ's mother testified that her son "didn't have the capacity to engage in physical or emotional intimacy," and therefore didn't and couldn't consent to the relationship, as reported by StyleCaster.
Anna's case went to trial in 2015, where she was found guilty and convicted of aggravated sexual assault.
She was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
In October 2016, DJ and his family were awarded $4 million in a civil lawsuit against Anna.
In 2017, she was granted a retrial and pled guilty to a charge of criminal sexual contact, with credit given for time served.
Anna served just two years before being released, and, now divorced, lives primarily out of the public eye in New Jersey.
“When I first came out of prison, I managed to pick up a waitressing job and then there was some publicity around the plea bargain and I was sentenced,” she said in the documentary.
“One of the customers complained, so they let me go.”
She continued, “I’m working at home and nobody knows who I am. It’s not teaching, but that was my whole identity.”
DJ still lives with his mother, and spends time with his brother and his other family members.
He has not seen Anna since 2011, shortly after she came clean about the duo's "relationship" with his mother and brother.
“On behalf of my brother, who is nonverbal, I want to say, ‘Me, too,’” DJ's brother told the New York Times.
“This was not merely touching for ‘mutual pleasure.’"
"This was rape. She raped him two times. She did godawful things with him, and I believe the punishment is woefully inadequate.”
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How can I watch, Tell Them You Love Me?
Tell Them You Love Me is a true crime documentary.
The documentary film premiered exclusively on Netflix on Friday, June 14, 2024.
The streaming giant says the film "explores the controversial relationship between a professor [Anna Stubblefield] and a nonverbal man [Derrick Johnson] that leads to a trial over race, disability, and power."
Netflix also describes the documentary as "scandalous."
Netflix offers several different plans and payment options, including:
- Standard with Ads – $6.99+ per month, including ad-supported movies and TV shows, full HD, and streaming on up to two supported devices at a time
- Standard, Ad-Free – $15.49+ per month, including unlimited ad-free movies, full HD, and streaming on up to two supported devices at a time
- Premium – $22.99+ per month, including unlimited ad-free movies, ultra HD, and streaming on up to four supported devices at a time
Documentarian, journalist, writer, and broadcaster Louis Theroux serves as one of the documentary's executive producers.
The documentary is directed by Nick August-Perna, who is best known for The Oxy Kingpins (2021), No Passport Required (2020), and The Swell Season (2011).
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Viewers in the US can also rent or buy the documentary film on Apple TV.
Viewers in the UK can watch the documentary on Sky Stream, Netflix, or Disney+.
