"Just because I’m a public figure, just because I’m an actress, does not mean that I asked for this. It does not mean that it comes with the territory. It’s my body, and it should be my choice, and the fact that it is not my choice is absolutely disgusting. I can’t believe that we even live in that kind of world. ... I started to write an apology, but I don’t have anything to say I’m sorry for. I was in a loving, healthy, great relationship for four years. It was long distance, and either your boyfriend is going to look at porn or he’s going to look at you.
It is not a scandal. It is a sex crime. It is a sexual violation. It’s disgusting. The law needs to be changed, and we need to change. Just the fact that somebody can be sexually exploited and violated, and the first thought that crosses somebody’s mind is to make a profit from it. It’s so beyond me. I just can’t imagine being that detached from humanity. I can’t imagine being that thoughtless and careless and so empty inside. Anybody who looked at those pictures, you’re perpetuating a sexual offense. You should cower with shame."
--Jennifer Lawrence in the latest issue of Vanity Fair on the massive nude leak that's just been unfolding more and more over recent weeks, but there's a catch: though Jennifer's saying strong words and tossing terms like "sex crime" and "sexual offense" around, she's treading in questionable waters.
See, Jennifer -- who, yes, is a public figure -- willingly took those photos herself with the knowledge that she is a public figure. She is going to be a target, and sensitive information will be pilfered if it can, because sadly, that's the world we live in. Of course Jennifer didn't "ask" for this -- who would? -- but comparing it to a "sex crime" and a "sex offense" is a little out of bounds.
President Clinton probably didn't "ask" to be caught up in his sex scandal with Monica Lewinsky, but it became explicit public knowledge quickly -- simply because of who he was. If it were anyone else, it wouldn't have been nearly as big a deal. Unfortunately, because of his title ... and his place in society ... it was. And the same goes for the actors and actresses who were hacked.
We empathize and grieve for the dismal decline of our society alongside Jennifer, because yes -- what happened was a horrific invasion of privacy, and violation is an appropriate word. But thinking that you're immune -- that anyone is immune, really -- to this kind of violation is just as naive and dangerous as thinking that things are going to change on your say so. That's unfortunately not how things work, and regrettably, the only way to truly safeguard your privacy in this day and age is the cold, hard truth of not setting yourself up to be vulnerable in this particular manner.
h/t FishWrapper
