POPULAR CULTURE, GBV: THE DIDDY SCANDAL

The past couple of months have been interesting for people who follow pop culture and are fans of either the accused or the victims in the cases (or many cases) against Puff Diddy. I’ve been following, with keen interest, the emerging stories and confessions by other celebrities of the sexual acts he exposed them to, whether by soliciting their services or offering some to them. It’s been a whirlwind of story after story. I am prompted to take a deeper look at what gender-based violence (GBV) is in relation to pop culture.

The United Nations defines GBV as ‘any act of violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life’. I strongly believe that this definition is a bit biased because it focuses on the damage and violence that is being done on women, and not men. So I found a more balanced definition: The World Health Organization (WHO) defines GBV as ‘any act of violence that results in or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to men, women or children’.

According to the WHO, one in three women worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, and around 30 per cent of women globally have been subjected to intimate partner violence. And men are also affected by GBV – around one in five men have experienced some form of physical violence in their lifetime.

Studies

There have been many high profile cases in the media recently, like the Harvey Weinstein scandal. And studies show that sexual harassment is still a widespread problem, with up to 50 per cent of women reporting experiencing it in the workplace. And men can also be victims of sexual harassment in the workplace, like in the Diddy case, where mostly the victims have been young men, of course and women too, but this shows that no one is immune to gender-based violence.

In popular culture, we see a lot of violence that is sadly being glorified. The Chris Brown and Rihanna case is a great example of how celebrities can perpetuate harmful stereotypes about GBV. In 2009 Brown assaulted Rihanna, and a video later surfaced of the assault. This sparked a lot of debate about how Brown’s music and videos glorified violence. And even after the assault, Brown’s videos continued to glorify violence, with some videos featuring images of him as a stalker or an aggressor.

Another case that debunked the idea that GBV is a poor people’s problem is the case of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. Depp was accused of domestic violence by Heard, and their case became a major news story. And many people commented on how the case reflected broader issues of GBV and how the media and public perception of the case had an impact on victims of domestic violence.

Victim

The story of Terry Crews is a good example of a man being a victim of GBV. In 2017 Crews accused a Hollywood agent of groping him at a party. And his story sparked a lot of discussion about how GBV affects men, and how male victims can be overlooked or not taken seriously. In the ‘P Diddy’ story, when Cassie accused Diddy of GBV, a settlement was reached the following day without any unnecessary publicity and dragging.

And yet, when his producer accuses him of something similar, he is being double guessed and no one is taking his case that seriously in that there hasn’t been any progress regarding that lawsuit in terms of settlement, only people showing up to dispute his claims and accusing him of only wanting to cash in. Why is his case being treated differently?

GBV is a serious and widespread problem, and it affects people of all genders. Popular culture can play a role in perpetuating harmful stereotypes and behaviours, but it can also be a force for change. People like Terry Crews and Amber Heard have helped raise awareness about the issue, and there is still a lot of work to be done to prevent and address gender-based violence.

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