Tito Jackson's second eldest son, Taryll “Taj” Jackson, recently appeared on "Iyanla: Fix My Life" and admitted to being sexually violated by a male family member when he was a child. Taryll did want to make one thing clear and stated that the relative was not one of his father's brothers. Tito Jackson shot to fame performing along with his famous brothers: Jackie, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael as the Jackson Five. In fact, Taryll said the relative was someone from his mother’s side of the family and that his uncle Michael consoled him.
Unprocessed pain
Iyanla sat down with Taryll in an effort to understand why he continued to punish himself by remaining in a broken relationship with girlfriend Breana. Shortly thereafter, the big reveal came. Initially, Taryll and Breana believed their problems stemmed from emotional distress caused by the murder of Taryll's mother "Dee Dee" and the tragic death of his uncle Michael. The 3T singer and nephew of Janet Jackson confessed to harboring massive guilt for the two deaths, which were out of his control. He tearfully explained struggling with loss. The singer feels he was not there for his uncle as much as the pop star had been there for him. He also felt intense guilt over his mother's murder.
Taryll spoke about how she had been killed by her boyfriend, who beat her and wanted her to ask Michael for money. She refused to do it.
A time to heal past wounds and move forward
Iyanla regarded Taryll's revelation about being the victim of sexual abuse as a major step towards healing. She pointed out how the pressures of coming from a famous family and not dealing with loss and pain drove a wedge between Taryll and Breana.
The couple, who share two children, later reported they will use what they've learned to work on their relationship. Taryll and his two brothers lost their mother, Delores “Dee Dee” Martes Jackson in 1994. She was 40-years-old. Initially, the boys were told that their mother’s pool death at the home of her 59-year old boyfriend, Donald Bohana, was accidental.
Convinced that their mother’s death was not accidental, the police reopened the case, where autopsy reports revealed several abrasions and injuries on Dee Dee’s body.
Those close to Tito Jackson’s ex-wife knew she was unable to swim and would never position herself so close to a swimming pool. Therefore, Bohana’s story of discovering her in the pool didn’t hold water. Taryll and his brothers filed a wrongful death suit, and several years later, Bohana was found guilty in the case.
