What Happened to Emily Ratajkowski Happens to Too Many Women
Rape culture is real, and it’s doing well
Suddenly, out of nowhere, I felt the coolness & foreignness of a stranger’s hands cupping my bare breasts from behind. I instinctively moved away, looking back at Robin Thicke. — Emily Ratajkowski, ‘My Body’
A few days ago, supermodel Emily Ratajkowski claimed that she was sexually assaulted by R&B singer Robin Thicke while filming the video for the 2013 song ‘Blurred Lines.’
The allegations, first reported in the Sunday Times newspaper, feature in Ratajkowski’s forthcoming book ‘My Body.’ The video’s director, Diane Martel, confirmed that she recalled the alleged incident.
Should anyone really be surprised?
When ‘Blurred Lines’ came out eight years ago, it was immediately branded as ‘the rape song.’ It even got banned in some places for its message on consent and glorification of rape culture. Its main line — repeated 18 times — ‘I know you want it’ is quite creepy, to say the least.
The song’s video was also largely met with backlash from viewers who felt it ‘seemed to objectify and degrade women.’
And as it turns out, making of it fostered an environment where sexual assault could happen.
