I don't actively seek out information about the Kardashians/Jenners but sometimes there's no avoiding news about them. When the news broke of Blac Chyna and Rob Kardashian's engagement, I looked into why it was such a big deal. Long story short, Blac Chyna and Tyga had a child together and were engaged until Tyga broke it off and started dating Kylie Jenner.
Usually, I would just shake it off and let people live. But Tyga is 26 and Kylie Jenner is 18. They started their romance when she was 16 and he was 24 but didn't become official until Kylie's 18th birthday, AKA when she became legal.
Why the f*** is a grown man dating a 16-year-old? The legal age of consent is 18. Tyga could technically be prosecuted for statutory rape. Kylie Jenner was a child, celebrity or not. Kardashian or not. Of course, the media glorified this relationship and wrote "news" articles about their Instagram posts and speculated. This sends the message to 16 year olds that dating a 24-year-old is okay. It sends a message to 24 year olds that seeking out and dating children is okay.
It's not. It's gross. Grown men should not be dating young girls. That's predatory and pedophilia. Grown men who date teenage girls aren't dating women their own age for a reason. They like the power dynamic that comes with an age difference like this. They like being in control.
When Kylie was 17, Khloe spoke out against people criticizing Tyga and Kylie's relationship.
I think at 16 I was probably f*****g someone that was in their 20s, for sure. I wouldn’t say I was even dating, probably just sleeping with them. But again Kylie is not a normal 17-year-old. You’re not gonna say, “Hey, so what are you doing this weekend?” and have her say, “Having a slumber party at my girlfriend’s,” or “Going to prom.” That’s not what Kylie does. Kylie is taking business meetings and bought her first house, or she’s going on a private plane with Karl Lagerfeld to take a meeting. That’s not even what people do in their 30s. It’s a rare circumstance, so let’s treat this as a special case.
We get it. Kylie has fame and fortune, which allows her to pretend she's 30. But she's not. It's not a special case. She was still a child.
The "special case" remark seems reminiscent of defenses people use for sexualizing children. "Well, she developed early." "The makeup makes her look older." "Middle schoolers these days look like they're in their 20s!"
When will the sexualization of our children stop? We sexualize underage celebrities all the time. Underage girls are pimped out as prostitutes. "Barely legal" is one of the top searched categories of porn. The sexual abuse and rape of young children is an ongoing problem.
We need to stop normalizing these things. Adults need to stop "liking" underage celebrities' "sexy" pictures on Instagram. We need to actively criticize men who date teenage girls. It needs to stop.
