Amy Schumer Is Making A Huge Change

Her show Inside Amy Schumer may be all about hilarity in its third season, but in real life, Amy Schumer is dealing with a much more serious situation. On April 30, the actor and comedian explained in an Instagram post that due to a scary fan interaction, she has decided to stop taking photos with fans, at least for the most part. Schumer revealed that earlier in the day, a man on the street apparently demanded a picture with her, ignoring her request to not be photographed, and it caused her to re-evaluate her fan relationships, at least where photos are confirmed. She captioned her photo of the man with these words:

This guy in front of his family just ran up next to me scared the sh*t out of me. Put a camera in my face. I asked him to stop and he said " no it's America and we paid for you" this was in front of his daughter. I was saying stop and no. Great message to your kid. Yes legally you are allowed to take a picture of me. But I was asking you to stop and saying no. I will not take picture with people anymore and it's because of this dude in Greenville.

While her new policy will surely be disappointing to fans, the scariness of this instance makes it totally understandable why she would, at least temporarily, shy away from taking photos with strangers. And unfortunately, I'm sure it's not the only instance of fans ignoring her requests and invading her privacy; this is likely just the one that sent her over the edge. Encountering celebrities often gives people the impression that they're meeting a close friend, which can make people ignore the boundaries they would usually have around strangers. This is completely uncool, and when fans encounter their favorites celebrities, they should treat them with the politeness they would use to interact with anyone they don't know well.

Thankfully, Schumer isn't giving up on fan photos completely; as she tweeted later in the day on April 30,

That's good to hear, but the interaction Schumer had could still act as a good lesson for everyone. While the personal and irreverent nature of her comedy might give fans the impression that they know Schumer, or that she is down for everything, that's clearly not the case. Often, fans often bring out their craziest, most dangerous selves around celebrities they love, and regardless of how "larger than life" stars might seem, they are as capable as the rest of us of feeling afraid when encountering a passionate stranger. That man should have respected Schumer's boundaries, and realized that her celebrity does not change the fact that no means no.

Of course, not all fans invade personal boundaries, and many have nothing but sweet encounters with the stars they love. Yet occasionally, people like this guy ruin it for the rest of us, and they are the reasons celebrities sometimes use bodyguards, drive in armored cars, and erect fences around stages, despite the fact that social boundaries should be enough. Sure, you might want Schumer's picture, but I bet she'd appreciate you even more if you just sat laughing in the audience on her tour and respected her space when she asks for it.