As soon as people got their hands on Kristen Stewart’s Elle UK interview, there were a series of quotes that immediately got passed around. Kristen was discussing fame, the paparazzi, and how she handled everything. Instead of showing a bit of grace, or acknowledging that she is part of a corporate machine hellbent on making billions of dollars on the idea of vampires who sparkle. Instead, Kristen said:
“What you don’t see are the cameras shoved in my face and the bizarre intrusive questions being asked, or the people falling over themselves, screaming and taunting to get a reaction…All you see is an actor or a celebrity lit up but a flash.”
“It’s so…The photos are so…I feel like I’m looking at someone being raped. A lot of the time I can’t handle it. I never expected that this would be my life.”
“Your little persona is made up of all the places that people have seen you and what has been said about you. And usually the places that I am are so overwhelming in the moment and fleeting for me—like one second where I’ve said something stupid, that’s me, forever.”
[From Kristen Stewart’s Elle UK interview via Ace Showbiz]
Most of us reacted with a simple “STFU, K-Stew.” But you knew more was coming – and it did. Radar gets the executive director of the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault to go on the record about Kristen’s “poor choice of words.”
Rape crisis groups are not happy with Kristen Stewart’s bizarre comment that being famous is almost like being “raped.”
“What you don’t see are the cameras shoved in my face and the bizarre intrusive questions being asked, or the people falling over themselves, screaming and taunting to get a reaction,” the Twilight starlet told the latest issue of Britain’s Elle Magazine.
“The photos are so … I feel like I’m looking at someone being raped.”
Not surprisingly, the analogy has drawn stiff criticism from rape support groups around the globe.
“Clearly that kind of violation is not the same as rape… it’s just not the same,” said Harriet Lessel, the executive director of the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault.
“I understand that Kristen Stewart was expressing that she feels violated. Sure violation is a form of sexual assault, but it’s the most serious and the most personal. It’s clearly a poor choice of words.”
Stewart also used the interview to admit it is “annoying” when she is relentlessly asked if she and Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson are an item.
The 20-year-old said: “What I say is, that, why would I want anything that’s private to become entertainment for other people? … People say that if I just tell them everything I’ll be left alone, but God, you think if I tell people they’ll leave me alone? They pick up every little scrap, and that’s much worse.”
[From Radar]
I think Harriet Lessel’s criticism is kind of an understatement. Obviously, rape crisis centers around the world don’t want to make an enemy of the Twilight franchise. They would be bombarded with Twihard civil disobedience, I think. Protesters, sit-ins, badly-written letters, all to defend Kristen’s asinine “rape” statement. Kristen just needs to back down and say “Actually, now that I’ve thought about it, it’s nothing like rape. The paparazzi are just inconvenient.”
Kristen at the Costume Institute Gala on May 3, 2010 & in Australia on May 31, 2010. Credit: WENN.
I think the worst part of this is that the Twi-idiots will defend her statements. Do these morons have parents? Oh, that’s right, mommy is just as rabid.
Okay, i read the entire twilight saga in one month and loved them all. watched the first TWI movie, then saw the interviews with kristen and she was undoubtedly totally BORRREEDD and self absorbed the entire time. you could tell she was HATING being there; loads of eyerolls and serious heavy sighs. she obvs loves the $$$$$$$$$$$$ rolling in which will support her for years to come but has no time for the people/fans out there that are giving her all of those $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.. it was really offensive. i won’t pay to see her in anything else. ever.
If you don’t want to be chased by fans and paparazzi, don’t choose a career in the public eye. That being said, she is young and has no clue what rape victims actually go through.
Honestly what I find asinine is that she’s not allowed to describe her own painful experience in her own terms, using the analogy that feels right for her. Yeas, it was a strong one but it’s not the first time she’s trying to convey her meaning without success.
It’s awfull that just because she happened to be in that idiotic movie that became so popular you can treat her like a (public) commodity, a slave that has no right to complain about anything and has to shut up and smile and put up with any abuse from twihards, twihaters, paparazzy, tabloids and anyone else sho cares to sream some vile crap at her in person or via internet.
And it does feel like rape or assalt to me when I watch clips of her and other celebrities being hunted down like animals, when they are screamed at, their way out is blocked, and they can’t even show their real emotions againt abusers, can’t call cops, can’t even admit it hurts in public without being called names. They are victims in these kind of situations and anyone who says they should shut up about their pain has a sensitivity chip missing and is totally uncool.
she’s dumb just talking shit so she can be “cool” and not thinking of the consequences.
wtf I love her make up!
Maybe the word “rape” was a bit of line. But I don’t anyone should underestimate the frustration of having people taking your picture every day of your life.
I think a lot of celebrities enjoy that. But for the one (like her) who don’t appreciate that, it must be a nightmare to live!!! I honestly think you feel like you are violeted and like your life doesn’t belong to you anymore.
And don’t give me the “well that’s part of her job” or “there are worst things to live” or “she will be sorry the day no one is interessted in taking her picture anymore”… If all you want to do is acting, the paparazzi are not part of the job. It’s a unfortunate consequence, that’s all.
A part of me, really understand her, because if I was in her shoes (or in Britney’s shoes), I would have punched a paparazzi a long time ago…
Basically, paparazzi are always out of line (insulting celebrities to upset them, always following them, always taking their pictures, taking pictures of childrent, trying to take pictures of underwears…). But celebrities have no right to be out of line when it comes to critize the paparazzi…
So yes, the word Rape was a bit to much, but I definitly think she feels like it…
I prefer a girl like her, who tries to stand against all this system, instead of an attention wh*re who only lifes for paparazzi… At least she has so dignity left…
“you can treat her like a (public) commodity”.
Ermmm… by CHOSING a life in the limelight she IS a public commodity. An easily replaceable one – ask Rachelle Lefevre.
Heat.
Kitchen.
@N.D. I completely agree.
BOTTOM LINE: this is how she feels and she has the right to express it. She even says “I feel like …”
Another case of stupid people making a big deal over nothing.
I hate actresses like her, that complains for consequence of their own choices. She didn’t know that by playing in Twilight series, she will get that much attention?! Yeah, right!! Eye roll. Just looking at the numbers from the booksale. It was a bestseller, just like the Harry Potter serie, but you don’t hear the actress from HP complain. So everyone knew that the movies will the well at the boxoffice, with her poor attitude she’ll ruin it for the others because she can’t act like a lady. She should be gratefull, not a brat. She’s not such a great actress to begin with and this will probably be the only movies that people will remember her by.
You can avoid the paps. It’s possible. Sandra Bullock sure as hell managed to keep a low profile. All these celebs who get hounded by paps secretly adore it. If NO ONE ever took a photo of K-Stew again, I think she’s get pissed and wonder why no one was paying attention to her anymore. Same goes for Lohan or Sean Penn or any other celeb who complains about the situation they’ve created for themselves.
I don’t like her. I don’t like Twilight and all that it stands for – submissive girls who’d rather commit suicide over guys than be confident without them and I’m glad she flew out of Australia. One more week with Twilight news on the TV, and I would have needed a replacement TV.
The thing I find so interesting in all this is how hard everyone is on girls. I see it in the workplace all the time. Men get passes on the things they say (Uh, when Robert Pattinson said, “I hate vaginas”), but not women. Seriously, we pick them apart. Can’t imagine that she literally meant that she felt raped, but probably really violated by the intrusiveness of what some will do to get her picture. Wrong use of the word? Absolutely, but she’s 20! Can you imagine if things you said when you were 20 were dissected the way her words are? Yes, I know she’s a public figure now, but she is still so young. She’ll learn, just like we all have. She seems to be a smart girl.
“If all you want to do is acting, the paparazzi are not part of the job.”
That’s not strictly true actually. I work in the industry, and “name” casting is becoming more and more essential. If I take a film to a studio or to financiers with some amazing unknown actor who works in theatre and is never bothered by paparazzi attached to star, I’ll be laughed out of the meeting.
People who are looking at risking possibly millions of dollars on a film want all the security they can get, and that means actors who are buzzed about – and that means media, and that means paparazzi. Actors know this – their agents and publicists certainly do – and some of them play the game better than others.
I’m simplifying the process for the purpose of the comment of course, there are other factors involved – but the fact remains that Kristen Stewart has opportunities that many actors would give their eye teeth for because her name and photo are in magazines regularly.
Rape and being photographed by the paps are almost the same. They would be EXACTLY the same if every rape victim (including men, women, children, and the elderly) signed a legal agreement to, in fact, be raped; and received millions of dollars for their (completely voluntary) participation in said rape.
What an idiot.
I’m adding her to the list of people I would enjoy punching in the face.
P.S. Being a big-budget movie actor is not the only way to be a working actor. Choosing to act on stage or in small films would prevent her from being “raped”. If only actual rape victims had that choice.
@GatsbyGal: It’s probably possible for Sandra to do it because she has lots of money, she’s older and smarter, and she’s already well established as an actor and doesn’t need the exposure. Kristen pretty much has to suck it up and do the appearances at this point in her career.
I do think she should issue some kind of statement to the effect of, “I am sorry if my comment offended any rape victims” etc.
Her only fault right now is being to honest and not vetting her words during interviews. She probably needs to lay off the ganga so she doesn’t get diarrhea of the mouth and say whatever comes into her head. I’ve seen videos of women stars being jostled and yelled at by the paps and it’s scary and invasive. Frankly I’d feel the same way as she does, though I wouldn’t put the way she did.
Knew that was coming. I like her eye makeup.
The bottom line is being a “*celebrity” is like living in a terminally recordable fishbowl. That does not, however, excuse the abhorrent behaviour of the paparazzi: stalking parents taking children to school, deliberately pissing people off, and engaging in high-speed vehicle chases to get pictures.
*My use of the word “celebrity” is not to be confused with “famewhore” or “celebutard”, as there are too many of those to count.
I don’t think it’s bad for her to complain about the paparazzi. Before Twilight, she was in a string of indie flicks and was virtually unknown. None of them knew how big Twilight would be or fast it would blow up. I’d believed that she got into acting because she likes to perform, not for the fame.
That doesn’t make her word choice okay, though. Having your picture taken constantly is a huge invasion of privacy and I can see her feeling incredibly violated. That DOES NOT equate it with rape. It doesn’t matter what her intention was when using the word, the fact of the matter is that rape is an extremely loaded word that evokes feelings of anger, shame, self-doubt, fear, depression, and so many others. The casual use of the word rape contributes to the desensitizing of our culture against the idea and consequences of rape. That’s pretty serious.
That said, everyone makes mistakes, but most of us have the privilege of not having cameras in our faces as we make them. We live and learn, and so will Kristen. Hopefully.
GatsbyGal: You can avoid the paps. It’s possible.
Not on the PRESS CIRCUIT for a new movie.
Have you seen the way those people freak out? She’s not objecting to the pictures in itself but the frenzied actions, the flashing, the screaming and the people crushing into you until you feel like there is no escape.
She used to annoy me but when I think of having every word I made-as a teenager-dissected and pasted on every newspaper I just feel sorry for her now.
And my god, what ever happened to freedom of speech or the illusion of it, at any rate? Heaven forbid, that her FEELINGS on the subject offend anyone. And thats all they were, her feelings on the situation.
sure, she’s 20 and dumb, however, she is 20 and surrounded by “people” who undoubtedly coach her on how to not sound like an idiot and yet she sounds like one anyway. if she doesnt like it, she’s welcome to not do anymore movies. im already sick of her constant bratface.
” I may be one of the few who found Stewart’s fame/rape analogy both intelligent and graphically to the point. I’ve seen the paparazzi at work. It’s both disturbing and repulsive. Those criticizing Stewart have been twisting her words, making the 20-year-old actress sound insensitive and immature. Actually, what she said is anything but.
Unfortunately, most people don’t have the mental capability (or the willingness) to understand either metaphors or the fact that one can be emotionally and psychologically raped, insisting that the word be used only when relating to vaginas or anuses. Those people are incapable of grasping that rape — painful intrusion, invasion, aggression, disrespect — can and do occur all the time in ways that have nothing to do with sex. Much like the most obscene forms of behavior occur when people are fully clothed. And I’m not referring to kinky sex here.”
-Andre Soares
I beg to differ@N.D. @ Jessica… she is now in the public eye and sadly part of her belongs to us because we make her famous and elevate her to celebrity. If we did not buy the books, or see the movies she would be some shitty little teen in living a life of obscurity. All Celebs would be in that position if we had no TV, no movies or magazines.
also I have experienced both. crazy paps following because i was mistaken for someone famous & me and being violated in the most horrific way raped by 3 men. I can assure you it is not the same it is not even close. The photos do not come close. being followed and having your photo taken is annoying and off-puting. being Raped is potentially soul destroying. She is an idiot self entitled / self important teenager that has not learned to engage brain before mouth. but a fool nonetheless. If i had a choice on being followed by the paps or raped I would choose the paps hands down no question and I’d do it for free to have that little piece of my heart/ soul/ sanity / security back.
I do feel bad for what she goes through with the twitards and paps. But, if she hates it so much, quit and go do something else with your life. Every moment is a choice and she chooses to remain in the public eye. This is unfortunately part of it. She seems to hate it, so why do it? And she has said she can’t stand the twitards, so it’s funny that they keep rabidly defending her and stalking her.
I really think she will fade away after the twicrap is over. Can’t happen soon enough.
She’s annoying. Don’t like her look — not her clothes, per se, but her face. She should use this negative publicity to draw some attention actual rape and the plight faced by rape survivors. Perhaps she could even spend some of her time volunteering for a rape crisis organization.
she just isn’t media savvy i think. i mean i’m sure people from those groups would be furious if she talked about being facebook raped like a bajillion people i know do every day. i’m not saying that what she said wasn’t stupid i just cut her a bit of slack because she doesn’t seem to have thought out every single comment she makes to the press unlike a lot of celebrities and their perfect sound bites.
they want the fame and then they bitch about it
What’s Twilight?!?!
She can say whatever she likes: that she won’t pick up a dictionary first is none of my affair.
The hoary old position about how men are treated differently, or that all women are ‘haters’ is turning into a real cop-out. I call ‘shenanigans’ on the use of a certain brand of ‘sexism’ in these cases. Everyone makes mistakes, does dumb stuff and experience youthful folly, but so often it acts as a deflector those who don’t want to be held accountable for anything. Sexism in Hollywood must be despairingly ubiquitous, but the stupidity of others is absolutely not an invitation to be stupid yourself. You don’t get extra credit for just showing up and placing blame, so it seems like just so much fighting over the monkey bars.
We’re always hearing about the constraints that are put on women, so apologists come out of the woodwork whenever some lady says or does something that’s patently ridiculous. Again, they’re young and observed and yes, violated, but then it always takes a turn into sexism itself. Am I meant to believe that we can’t ever take what women say or do seriously because we’re all such dumb and weak babes in the woods and all of that *thinking* is just so, so hard? Perpetually play the victim if you like, but don’t be surprised when people start to view you that way. If you want to be taken seriously (as you take yourself), command respect, don’t demand it.
I like her.
She used a simile and expressed how she feels, CRUCIFY HER!!!!!
People are so obviously CHOOSING to get all worked up about this and twist what she said into something bigger, you’re just proving her point.
And the argument that she “signed on for this” is just ridiculous. It doesn’t excuse the treatment she gets from the paps. Period.
To use her perhaps badly-chosen analogy myself, wearing a short skirt is NOT asking to be raped. It’s blaming the victim for someone else’s outrageous behavior by saying, “well, what did you expect dressing like that? You asked for it.”
Find a worthier target, please. There are plenty of plastic bimbos to choose from who do far worse damage to women (and survivors of rape) than Kristen Stewart.
for the love of god, someone please take me off moderation.
Former rape crisis counselor, here. I understand that Stewart feels violated by paps, but I still think it’s a loooong shot off from what a rape survivor has to process and go through. I can respect Stewart’s feelings on the matter, but I can’t get behind her statement.
I’ve spoken to men and women who were raped. It’s a low act of violence, a seizing of power and control. It haunts people. It’s a horrible trauma.
You know, after having counseled survivors on the verge of suicide because of something that wasn’t their fault, it makes Stewart’s words hard to take. She’s allowed to feel whatever she wants, and that’s valid. But perhaps in the future she should consider the impact of the language she chooses to express those feelings.
Even better, perhaps she should consider enrolling in a rape crisis counseling course. If she really feels this violated, it might help her get a better understanding of it, and helping others goes a long way towards one’s own personal healing. It might do her some good.
Just sayin.’
You’re doing good work, Penguen. I’m nowhere near brave enough to take up an occupation of that sort.
Out of curiosity – wouldn’t you say there is a difference between feeling like you are beeing raped, and feeling like a person witnessing someone being raped? I’m not condoning her statement, it just seems to me that a lot of comments directly equate Ms. Stewart’s comments on her experience with the paparazzi with being raped, which does not seem to be what she said, exactly:
“The photos are so … I feel like I’m looking at someone being raped.”
@justsayin & @Penguen: I agree whole heartedly with you both. As a rape survivor myself I find her choice of words to be offensive. It wounded me that she would use that word in such a way. Not enough to crucify her, but enough that I hope she learns better.
At the same time, she is young and the young are stupid and I can forgive it this time. Youth and stupidity would not work in her favor should she decide to be so insensitive again. I hope that the backlash from this will teach her to think before she speaks in the future and not offend others in such a way.
And Penguen: thank you for the good work that you did to help rape victims, as it is very badly needed. Thank you for being brave and doing something that had to hurt your heart and soul every day as you tried to help those hurting to try and survive the terrible thing that happened to them.
And those of you who think it’s stupid to get offended at a poor choice of words, you are unbelievably blessed to never have been raped or had someone very dear to your heart be raped. Thank your lucky stars and don’t speak on topics that you have no real knowledge of or belittle the feelings of those who’s lives have been shattered and will never be whole again.
Ok, I am not a big board poster, but everybody needs to chill on the personal attacks. She is 20, she never wanted to be famous – as evidenced by her numerous INDIE movies (and Twilight was essentially an indie movie by an indie director before the mass frenzy of the crazies) so can you blame her for being pissed that photographers follow and provoke her EVERYWHERE she goes??
No, comparing being photographed to being raped is not the best idea, but in my opinion, that is not what she did. Maybe you will call it semantics but she said LOOKING at the pictures feels like she’s LOOKING at someone being raped. She never said she felt like SHE was being raped. I think she was trying to convey in an impactful way that the pictures feel like such a complete invasion of privacy that even looking at them invokes a revolting reaction.
Maybe the only way-in that instant-that she could think to describe it was to recall the most sickening invasion of privacy she could relate it to. Rape was probably not the best choice, but making a comparison on the spot is not always easy when you are attempting to convey strong feelings. Basically, cut her some friggin slack.
First let me say for the record that I hate Twilight. Second she was just saying how she feels. Was it an accurate analogy? No! Was it appropriate? No. Do you think she intentionally tried to cause offense to the victims of rape? I do not think so.
She is not the only person in history to have something come out wrong, or use an overly strong analogy. Perhaps it would have been better to use the word violated? Maybe, but we have to get over it people. We all understood what she meant, and I don’t think her intention was to trivialise someone elses pain. I’m not going to get worked up because this girl has a small/stupid vocabulary.
I don’t think that this girl has a lot of control over her public appearances for Twilight, I think she does what is in her contract. I don’t see a lot of photos of her out partying/eating/generally seeking attention.
Yes perhaps she has chosen a job that comes with the papparazzi. But I’m sure no one can fully expect quite how intense they can be, it doesn’t make the paps behaviour right, and it definately doesn’t mean that she is not allowed to react to it.
ahhhhhh come on. You can’t say anything these days without some friggin organization shoving their agenda down your throat. Yeah, poor choice of words indeed and nobody should make light of rape but jeez, relax and stop using people to further your agenda. (this does not apply to fur wearing celebrities though… those actions actually result in dead animals whereas Stewart’s poor choice of wording is just that… poor choice of wording and will probably never result in dead :-/)
@historian:
I’m so, so sorry that you had to endure a trauma like that, but I can see by your compassion and strong conviction that, yes, you are truly a survivor and a class act to boot. Thank-you for the words and blessings to you and other survivors (everyone else soo) for the future.
Not going to into details, but my upbringing was fraught to say the least. I suffered many abuses, but the one I didn’t have to face was sexual. I don’t know how one begins to pull him or herself out of that heartache but what courage it must take!
I bring it up because I’m sure that we all have triggers that elicit visceral responses in us. I understand the frustration felt on the part of others who see these responses as going back to that well, but if conversation keeps going back there, there has got to be a pain that keeps knocking at our doors. Pain can’t be slotted into a timeline though, and I think that wanting people to get over it just widens the gulf. Being ridiculed for having to live through something so horrific and having a few battle scars can feel like another attack on top living every day with the memory of the crime. I don’t think people have malicious intent in saying it, it’s just that it’s extremely to move past it.
Where were all these apologists when Megan Fox was running her mouth off? Megan compares a creepy slimebag director to Hitler = BURN HER SHE’S A DUMB W****!! And when it’s someone you LIKE (ie. find non-threatening), it’s all “oh she’s so young, she’s making an clumsy and offensive analogy but I understand her meaning”. Ugh. No wonder people hate Angie so much, the more attractive (and thus threatening) you find a woman to be, the harsher you judge her.
@Michelle, I was with up until that last sentence. Women are pitted against each other and they frequently pit themselves against each other, but you can’t respond to that allegation in any kind of satisfying way because irrationalities rule over logic by nature. More of the ‘who does she think she is vs don’t hate me because I’m beautiful thing.
I got a lot of heat because I didn’t defend her. Basically I was sexist because I was re-inscribing and re-affirming dominance of white guy power. Whatever. Who has thought, ‘I got fired today, it’s a great day for feminism?
Sooooo tired of hearing celebs complain about the paparazzi. How would anyone in the public even begin to know how it feels anyway. They come off sounding whiney and elitist. Here’s a quick fix for it…..quit show biz. People would forget her real quick, just another pretty face.
Well, just like she doesn’t know the feeling of being raped I’m sure those hounding her don’t know the feeling of having tons of cameras and photogs in your face and clicking away every single day everywhere you go. Not that I’m saying it’s like rape but I imagine it’s still a very intrusive and helpless feeling.
she was trying merely to express how she felt…..and above comments about twilight fans defending her, just because you like something does not mean that everyone of us will defend the wrong, if she had said something really nasty and really deliberately wrong then i would be disgusted, i do tend to sit on the moral high ground!! And i do not take that subject lightly but she is a young girl who is clearly not comfortable with public events and YES her choice of words leaves much to be desired but who of you hasn’t or will at some point in our life say or do something that was distasteful to say the least, i’ve done it, not meaning to and yet i have, how many of you judging her right now have sat and listened to a so called comedian make jokes of starving people or child rape, michael jackson jokes about child rape, bad things are said all the time and most will laugh. Yet this girls comment was not made as a joke or to make light of anyone who has suffered such a terrible and deeply violating trauma, she was.. very badly trying to explain how she feels. And stop hateing people who like twilight who are over the age of 17, i am 33 and i love it, i’m not a drooling kind of fan i don’t go wild over everything twilight, but, i love ..and therefore, i connect, simple!!!
One more thing, how many of you judging right now have bullied or made light of anothers suffering, perhaps about depression …oh just get over it pick yourself up, how many in the offended organisations have said it or thought it… thats just a private question , no need to answer outloud