Sometimes I worry I’m saying things people must already know. Everyone knows not to touch strangers, right? There is no one who needs it clarified that they shouldn’t fucking pick up a stranger by the crotch and carry that stranger around, RIGHT?
Sorry for the early doors swear – I am burning with rage about this.
On Thursday, a video emerged of Gigi Hadid – a model and famous person – getting assaulted in the street by an entitled little prick who claims to be a ‘prankster.’
It happened as she left the Max Mara show in Milan – where she’s been WORKING for Fashion Week. In the video she’s holding her little sister, Bella’s hand as they make their way through the crowd. As she gets to the car, Vitalii Sediuk – AKA The Prick™ – comes up behind her, grabs her around her waist and – you might’ve missed this in the mess – in between her legs, and then lifts her in the air. He carries her away for a few feet, before she elbows him in the face and he lets her go.
In those few seconds, you can see Gigi still gripping Bella’s hand. Her knuckles are white. She has no idea what’s happening and has no control. Bella is screaming at him to put her sister down. And when he does, Gigi’s fury is palpable. You can see it, and – if you’re anything like me – you can feel it too. You can feel the fury tingling in your spine and the familiar feeling of fear, knowing you’ve been in similar situations, where you’ve lost control of your own body. It makes everything in me clench. It makes me kegel.
As Sediuk runs away, Gigi stomps after him looking like she is going to rip his face off and shouting, ‘Who the fuck are you, you piece of shit?’ (she’s answered her own question there – he is a piece of shit), before returning to her car and tapping her security guy – who she should definitely sack – on the shoulder, saying, 'Can you go find that man?'
This is the part of the video I get most. I understand her anger so hard. You feel so powerless in those kinds of situations. Like you want to hit everything. Someone just touched you without your consent and you can do nothing. It reminded me of a wedding I went to last year, where some idiot drunk guy pulled up my skirt on the dance floor. I was so angry, I wanted to hurt him with every fibre of my being. I didn’t care about everyone viewing my cellulite (maybe I cared a bit), mostly I cared about having my personal autonomy and power taken away. For a second, I was totally helpless. For a second I knew I could probably do very little if someone wanted to hurt me. These kinds of moments remind us of the awful powerlessness that can come with being a woman.
But guys, it’s just a prank! It’s hilarious!
Except nobody around Gigi is laughing. Literally no one. Everyone looks shocked – upset, even. And still the internet didn’t get it. The immediate online reaction was that Gigi had ‘attacked’ her ‘fan’. Commentators wrote things like, ‘...he was just having a joke...’, and, ‘horrible overreaction, if you are in the public eye you have this coming.’
This is the weird thing we have about celebrities. We think they are ours. They are famous, and therefore public property. And I imagine that’s particularly the case for a model. You are expected to be a mannequin – a hat stand. Your body is prodded and dictated to. Your hair is cut or coloured on the whim of a designer. Your face drawn on. But this happens to all women, to a lesser extent. Going outside makes you available for public debate and scrutiny. We are told to smile, judged on our clothes, our weight, our looks. Metaphorically picked up and examined – or literally, in Gigi’s case.
Gigi knows this, I think, and Tweeted afterwards: ‘The ACTUAL fans that were there can tell you what happened. I'm a HUMAN BEING and had EVERY RIGHT to defend myself. How dare that idiot think he has a right to man handle a complete stranger. He ran quick tho...'
How dare he is right. This was not a prank – this was assault (defined as ‘a threat of bodily harm coupled with an apparent, present ability to cause the harm’ – tick and tick). This is a man who feels entitled to touch people he considers 'public property'. A man who has previously gone to prison for that ‘joke’ in 2014 when he buried his head in Brad Pitt’s crotch. Another example of his ‘pranks’ was when he put his head up the skirt of actress America Ferrera on a red carpet. If this is a prank, I really don’t get it.
I hope someone explains to Sediuk what funny actually is. And I hope Gigi’s OK. And I hope we can all react as bravely and brilliantly as she did when we’re faced with situations like this. Because she’s right – he did run quick tho…