All weekend I'm sure you saw the pictures on Instagram from Governor's Ball or the endless albums on Facebook. From the outside, it looks like it's all fun and games - the singing, dancing and chanting. We all wish we could go, and I'm sure you also were upset when you saw the tickets were the price of a mortgage. However, rapper YG turned Governor's Ball into something else. I was scrolling through Facebook when I saw a post from a Facebook friend Sydney Luks, a young poet from New Jersey, whose Governor's Ball post was anything but the average. Sydney posted about an experience she saw at the music festival, and it wasn't about how good the lineup was or how extravagant all the food tasted. Sydney's post explained what she witnessed at YG's performance. Instead of a music performance, YG executed a sexual harassment performance.
During the rapper's show, the jumbo screen was set on a girl who looked around the age of 18. YG looked towards the girl and yelled, "I didn't come all the way to New York without seeing some titties!" You could tell a chill ran down her spine (and not in a good way). She shook her head no, but YG was relentless. The rapper was creating the show that will haunt this girl forever. YG got the entire crowd the chant "TITTIES! TITTIES! TITTIES!" in order to influence her to take her shirt off. All eyes were set on the girl as someone attempted to pull on her shirt. The girl continued to fight it and make it clear that it wasn't going to happen. However, YG and the crowd persisted. When it became clear she wasn't about to expose herself to thousands of people just because a famous rapper was harassing her from afar, YG dedicated his next song "Bitches Ain't Shit" to the girl who refused to show her chest in front of everyone. He then influenced the crowd to "Boo" her. Rightfully, she ran out of the show.
Dear YG,
You ruined not only a day this weekend but also a life. I'm sure this moment will run through this girl's head everyday, whether it be a terrifying flashback or a nightmare. You sexually harassed this girl, whether you realize it or not. Females face this type of harassment all the time and as in influencer you should be fighting it, not promoting it. Your little episode this weekend made it seem like it was okay for people to pressure women into exposing themselves when this generation has been trying so hard to prove the opposite. Maybe you thought it would be "funny" or "cool," but you don't know what this young girl has faced before. Maybe you weren't the first person to sexually harass her. Maybe she is already in therapy for a similar situation. Maybe she was at the festival to take her mind off a time tough she may be going through. No woman should ever be harassed or pressured in this way, especially at the young age of 18. YG, you not only condescended this girl to her face, but also you made sure it had an audience of thousands of people. So thanks a lot YG, for putting on quite the performance.
Sincerely,
The generation of girls who have been trying to prove ourselves to be more than a pair of breasts (or in your case, "titties").
