Close your eyes. Clear your mind and imagination. For a second, imagine it’s your 18th birthday, and you end the day with a grand celebration with all your family and friends. You’re about to go to bed, your dad knocks on your door to say goodnight or so you thought. He does say good night, but right before leaving, he places a sticky note on your door that says, “Gyno. Tomorrow. 9:30” once again, your father is taking you to the Gynecologist to check if your hymen is still intact…. whatever that means. And like that, your dream has instantly turned into a nightmare
A couple of weeks ago, rapper T.I. went on the podcast show “Ladies Like Us” and told the whole world how he still takes his teenage daughter Deyjah Harris to the gynecologist not to check on her reproductive health but to check on her hymen to see if it’s still intact to ensure that she is still a virgin. This statement brought outrage in a matter of days of the show airing. He has received an incredible amount of backlash. However, he still defends his comments. To make matters worse, T.I. went on to say he makes his daughter check off the release of the information box on her medical form, which is a HIPPA violation.
When this news came too light, it broke the internet. I remember when I first read the article, I thought it was fake or satire, but then T.I. Himself confirmed. I couldn’t believe the misogyny and sexism that this man was projecting on to his own daughter. He doesn’t realize that a hymen can break from doing regular activities like riding a bike or horse. Basically, a hymen breaking doesn’t equate to lost virginity. However, if it did, that doesn’t mean a woman is worth is any less. The response to this controversy was surprisingly mixed. Some people felt as though it was T.I.’s duty to check his daughter’s hymen, and others thought it was outrageous (because it is) for him to even think about doing something this horrific. I personally believed that it was not only an invasion of her privacy but makes T.I. seem like a very controlling figure in his daughter’s life.
After his recent appearance on “Red Table Talk” with his wife Tiny Harris along with the show’s host Jada Pinkett Smith, I hope he learned more about reproductive rights and how to parent without invading a child’s privacy.