Tags: #metoo, Aziz Ansari, Sexual Violence
Dear readers,
We started Kajal Magazine as a platform to rectify so many media wrongs by giving space to voices of color. From our earliest days, we have applied our politics to our platform as much as we can. It is the policy of this magazine to NOT report on people who have been accused publicly or privately of sexual violence, rape apologism, or any other harmful behavior, even when other outlets continue to do so. That is why we have stopped reporting on M.I.A. following her support of Julian Assange and why other well-known South Asian figures are not present on our site.
We published an op-ed about Aziz Ansari in the wake of accusations about his coercive sexual behavior because we felt it was important to have a specifically brown perspective after non-South Asian writers used Ansari’s race as a crutch for their defenses of him. But our coverage of Ansari ends here. We do not give platforms to sexual predators.
Kajal Magazine unwaveringly stands by Grace. We support victims and survivors of sexual misconduct. We believe that it took immense bravery for Grace to detail her experiences. Coercion is not consent. There are other forms of sexual violence besides rape and assault, and we intend to be fully indicting of these forms of violence. We will do our best in the future to continue reporting on what other media outlets call the “gray areas” of stories like Grace’s and we will never turn our backs on vulnerable people who need support.
Sincerely,
The Kajal Team