Recently, a video of Gigi Hadid has risen to the media's surface of a man coming from behind her and grabbing her as she exits a fashion show in Milan. In videos and pictures in which various media outlets have published, the man is appeared to have grabbed forcefully grabbed Gigi; lifting her off of the ground for several seconds. Gigi then acted fast and elbowed the intruder in the face until he let go of her, running away soon after. Even though Gigi had security mostly surrounding her, her instinct undoubtedly saved her life.
Gigi Hadid did what every woman violated in this manner should, and would wish to do. Gigi, because she is a human being who is entitled to no one, did what she had to do in that situation to get the man to let go of her. Though this is simply an example of self defense, several media outlets are painting Hadid as a girl who "lashed out" at a man, and "attacked" him. Some headlines are simply describing the incident as the man who grabbed her to be innocent, and Gigi to be the person in the wrong. However, how portions of the media are choosing to report this situation sheds a revolting and terrifying light on the rights of women in today's society.
There is a misplaced, underlying notion that still lingers in today's society that men are entitled to any woman they see. It's a sick belief that they are entitled to hit on her, touch her, and/or make her feel as uncomfortable as they want for their own happiness. No one will ever explicitly say this, but it is demonstrated in various situations such as this. Gigi Hadid had every right to defend herself from a man who saw her and immediately thought that he was entitled to her. The media outlets that are using harsh words such as "LASH OUT" to describe Gigi's self defense are only fueling this outdated, unwelcome notion in society. This goes far beyond page views; by attempting to attract the interest of readers, media outlets are being outright disrespectful and thoughtless. In today's society, completely neglecting the lives and rights of women should not be considered journalism.
