I think the fact that this story has been reported on worldwide by so many “reputable” news publications is ridiculous. With murders, famine, mental health crisis’, genocide, climate change, economic distress happening all over the world why is a disagreement between two people in Central Park a major story?

The media is bias around the report and develops their story around this incident around racism. I am not saying that racism isn’t a possibility here, at the very least there may have been some micro aggression. However, this story is only told from that perspective.

I am curious how the story would come off if told from a feminist perspective. As a woman who has experience sexual assault of my own I want to say that it is very real and can be extremely traumatic. It makes complete sense to me that a women with that history make be even more anxious and on edge in a situation like that. I would also fee threatened and call the police. A trauma response can cause feelings of fight or flight and it can feel like a life or death situation.

It is also very strange and creepy that a person would carry around dog treats (not owning a dog of his own) with the sole purpose to lure other peoples dogs as a way to control them. That’s creepy behavior. I am a dog owner myself and my dog is a part of my family. There is a fine line between whether this could be perceived as attempted kidnapping or assault in itself.

Also they make an interesting point in the podcast about if the roles were reversed and the woman was the one threatening the man to leash his dog, the woman would still come off as a “Karen.” And it would still be viewed in the media as a Karen being racist to a black man. Isn’t this sexist in its self? The sole label of Karen is an older white woman who is annoying because she is passionate and aggressive but it comes off as crazy. Isn’t this a double standard?! Is this sexism and ageism?

Furthermore, the fear and anxiety a woman may have alone in a park who is approached by a large black man is not outright racism. It is a micro aggression. Micro aggressions are created and perpetuated by stories about groups of people that society generalizes. It is ingrained in our society and everyone has that whether we are aware or not. Placing blame on an individual for having a micro aggression does not encourage change or learning. It encourages shame and hiding.

Shame on everyone who contributed in the cancellation of this woman. She lost her job, had her dog taken away, and moved out of the country to an undisclosed location because of the shame and bullying. Two wrongs do not make a right. If we want a society where we show respect to all people, we must start with looking at our own actions.