If you’ve watched American Idol recently, you've probably seen the recent episode where Katy Perry kisses a contestant. If you haven't, a 20-year-old male contestant named Ben Glaze was asked if he's ever "kissed a girl" (in reference to Katy Perry's song). When he replied no, Katy insisted that he kiss her on the cheek. After doing so, Perry claimed the kiss was barely a kiss and asked him for another.

Upon kissing her on the cheek a second time, Katy kissed him on the mouth, with him quickly backing away. While some viewers may have believed it to be funny, it seemed to me that Ben looked very uncomfortable, especially since he said that he hadn't dated before and that he wanted his first kiss to be with someone who he's dating and cares deeply about.

I was very disappointed in Katy. When someone seems uncomfortable in a situation, one shouldn't push the boundaries. This contestant didn't look very enthusiastic about kissing Katy on the cheek, so kissing him on the mouth won't make the situation better.

Just because Katy Perry is famous and a female doesn't give her the right to ignore consent. She never asked if she could kiss him on the mouth, she just went for it. While she might believe that some contestants might be excited to kiss Katy Perry, that doesn't make it right.

Consent is a big issue in today's world, and while people are mostly focusing on making sure that boys get girls' consent, people should as acknowledge that females make sure that the males give their consent too.

We tend to forget that males can be taken advantage of too. It doesn't matter if it's a quick kiss on the mouth. It was a violation of that boy's rights to be kissed on the mouth by Katy. If a famous male did this to a female contestant, people would be much more upset about the situation, but the point is that boys can be taken advantage. Men should be respected as well.

I always admired Katy, because she was someone who promoted women's empowerment through her songs. She wants women to be independent and strong. However, by her kissing this boy without his consent makes me think less of her.