News
On Monday, model and actress Emily Ratajkowski allegedly shut shut down a New York Times reporter who made a problematic comment about Melania Trump Monday. Unfortunately, this is one of only a few times that celebrities have come to Melania Trump's defense against misogyny, which has been used almost nonstop in regard to the new First Lady countless times over the last two years.
Melania has been the subject of attacks for years now, but the frequency and intensity of those attacks has increased dramatically since Donald Trump's presidential campaign began. Ratajkowski is one of the few celebrities to come to her aid, however, even as the attacks have become more frequent and spiteful in response to Trump's new political connection.
"[I] sat next to a journalist from the [Times] last night who told me 'Melania is a hooker.' Whatever your politics it's crucial to call this out for what it is: slut shaming. I don't care about her nudes or sexual history and no one should," Ratajkowski said via Twitter. "Gender specific attacks are disgusting sexist bullshit."
Some criticisms of Melania are fair, of course, like the fact that she hasn't spoken out against her husband's anti-immigrant executive orders. However, it's not OK to use misogynistic rhetoric to describe her, which should be obvious to everyone. This shouldn't be that nuanced of a feminist idea — attacks based on sex in any way aren't appropriate.
Sadly, however, only these celebrities have been outspoken against those attacks.
Bristol Palin
Palin had a guest blog spot last summer to call out feminist celebrities for not speaking out against Trump's nude photos, which had recently been published by The New York Post.
"The sexism Melania is currently experiencing for these photos from twenty years ago is the kind of slut-shaming other female celebrities have been fighting so hard against: being shamed online for what they’re wearing, or not wearing, and expressing sensuality," Palin wrote in the article for Patheos.
Kimberly Foster
The editor-in-chief of For Harriet takes a nuanced position on this issue from her black feminist perspective, but ultimately decries the haters who shamed Melania.
Boy George
The fashion icon isn't well-known for being a feminist, but he hit the nail on the head when addressing Melania's online attackers. “You know what — as somebody who has a past — I think it’s really wrong and mean-spirited of women to be so abusive,” George said in an interview last month.
Amber Rose
Rose is a vocal and inspirational feminist whose work often tackles issues regarding sexism, like she did regarding Trump on her podcast Loveline with Amber Rose back in November. “As much as we don’t like [Melania] Trump, I feel some type of way that she’s constantly getting slut shamed on the internet,” Rose said. “I think it’s complete bulls–. Listen, we don’t know Melania like that. I personally don’t think that she asked for this, and she’s kind of just standing by their husband, they have a son together.”
Megyn Kelly
In spite of all the history between Kelly and Melania's husband, the former Fox News anchor defended Melania against sexist attacks at The Hollywood Reporter's annual Women in Entertainment celebration. Kelly included Trump in a list of women who inspired her in 2016, because she was "slut shamed for her professional modeling photos [and] called a trophy wife by a very well known publication, but she held her head high and she spoke of loving America."
In a statement about the incident, the Times said: ""At a party last night, a Times reporter who does not cover Washington or politics referred to an unfounded rumor regarding Melania Trump. The comment was not intended to be public, but it was nonetheless completely inappropriate and should not have occurred. Editors have talked to the reporter in question about the lapse."
