The internet is blowing up with speculation about the Aziz Ansari allegation posted in Babe. People are desperately seeking to define it. Was it sexual assault? Was it not? The thinkpieces are already rolling out. People are boiling over with excitement to lay some of the blame on the young woman, Grace, for not rejecting Ansari forcefully enough. I’m seeing reasonable people somehow imagining that a 22-year-old woman could gather her resolve, push aside all her cultural training, and tell an older, wealthy celebrity, in no uncertain terms, NO.
I say “push aside all her cultural training” because women in our culture are trained from birth that men are fragile, emotional creatures who cannot withstand the slightest discomfort or rejection from women, and men prove that to us over and over and over.
How, you ask?
Like this:
These Fourteen Women Were Brutally Attacked for Rejecting Men
Nearly Half of All Murdered Women Are Killed By Romantic Partners
Black Woman Attacked, Beaten Unconscious After Rejecting Man’s Advances
Rejecting Men Has Deadly Consequences
Woman Beaten After Rejecting Man’s Advances
Man Strangles and Kills Teenager for Rejecting his Marriage Proposal
11 Black Women Who Were Killed for Saying “No”
#YesAllWomen: A Short Fuse Between Rejection and Violence
Young Mum Battered in Nightclub After Rejecting Thug’s Advances
NYC Man Who Attacked Asian Women Blamed Them for Rejecting Him
Man Confesses to Killing Woman Who Didn’t Want to Date Him
Man Viciously Attacks Woman for Refusing to Give Him Her Number
Female Tourist, 60, Repeatedly Punched in the Face After Rejecting Sexual Advances
Female Comic Brutally Beaten After Rejecting Men’s Advances
Irish Woman Beaten and Left in French Street for Rejecting Advances
When Men Attack the Women Who Reject Them: Terrifying Accounts from Their Victims
Pregnant Woman Slammed on the Ground, Stabbed, After Rejecting Man’s Advances
This Is What Happens When Women Reject Men Online
Man Sexually Assaulted Woman After Kiss Rejection
People are defending Ansari for not being able to “read her mind,” but completely miss the fact that she could not likewise read his. Women are attacked every single day for rejecting men. How was she to know if Ansari was going to be gracious or shout profanities at her, push her to the floor, spit on her, or kick her (literally) out of his apartment? I’ve had all that (and more) done to me as a young woman by men. Did every man I encounter do that to me? No. Was I able to know, in advance, who would push me violently and who would walk away? Also no, especially not on a first date.
Women are attacked every single day for rejecting men. For every story that makes the news, there are a thousand you’ve never heard of. It’s not just obvious douchebags or “men like that” (whatever “that” is). Women are attacked by men who are “nice guys.” Women are attacked by men who swear publicly they would never hit a woman. Women are attacked by men who are wealthy professionals. Women are attacked by older gentlemen. Women are attacked by celebrities.
I could not be less interested in Aziz Ansari and young Grace. This is just celebrity gossip unless we’re using this one story as an example of several larger issues that must be addressed in our culture.
- Men attack women for rejecting them so often that woman are terrified of rejecting them. This is a problem in a world where clear, enthusiastic consent is a must.
- You must get clear, enthusiastic consent before you put your hands on somebody. That burden is on the active party, not the passive one. The active party could be male, female, or nonbinary. If you’re going to put your hands on someone, it’s your job to get consent, not their job to stop you mid-grab and say no.
Let’s stop this victim-blaming nonsense. Women have every reason to fear giving that clear, unequivocal, forceful NO you’re all blaming Grace for failing to give. You put us in a no-win situation. If we fail to say no, we end up forced to do things we don’t want to do when you’re too inept and/or selfish to get clear consent. If we do say no, a large percentage of you attack us, and we have no way of knowing in advance.
Stop attacking women who reject you. Give us no reason to fear saying NO.
UPDATE: This piece from KatyKatiKate, “not that bad,” is well worth your time.