Baroness - Fan Sexually Assaulted At Band's Show
At the moment, Baroness are touring in Europe to present their new album, Purple. It was brought to their attention that Rosie Solomon, a fan of the band who attended their show in Birmingham on February 29th, wrote about her awful experience at the show, where she was allegedly sexually assaulted. The band decided to share her story online and slam the fan who did this. Props to the band for condemning this and not sweeping it under the rug, and to Rosie Solomon for taking a stand.
Here are a few bits of her article: "It started about halfway into Baroness' set. I felt something pressing into my leg and bottom. I thought nothing of it at first - it was crowded in there, and I'd be to plenty of gigs before where I'd ended up squashed in the crowd and so I thought it was completely normal. The man behind me was pushing into me in time with the music, but we were all jumping and bouncing and dancing and so I continued to think nothing of it. Until I looked around and I saw that he had plenty of space, and was deliberately thrusting his groin into my leg from behind."
"I was shaken, angry, upset, confused, but - above all - determined. This sort of behaviour (though not as prolonged) had happened to me at a gig before and I hadn't done anything about it and seriously regretted it later. I managed to convey to the venue staff that I wanted the police to be called, and I had calmed down enough to explain what had happened by the time they arrived. I was so worried that they wouldn't take this case seriously, as I had not been physically harmed and I had assumed that a case such as this would pale in comparison next to other things they may have to deal with. I am glad to say that I was completely wrong. The police handled the situation with kindness, tact and determination, telling me that I did the right thing to report the incident, and that what the man had done to me was completely and utterly illegal and wrong. I went with them to the police station where I was given tea, and they talked me through the process of giving a statement. It took a good couple of hours but finally I had a coherent statement that we were all happy with."
"If a person touches you in a sexual way without your consent, it is illegal. You can and should report it to the police, and it will be taken seriously. I made a decision to take action and not to be a passive victim of the situation that I was forced into that night. I am not an object of your sexual fantasy, I am a person and I have the right to see my favourite band live by myself without fearing for my safety. I have the right to go on a night out and not to be touched in unwanted ways. I have the right to walk down the street and not to have abuse yelled at me from the window of a white van. You do too. You have the power to take charge of a situation like mine, like any of these, like your own. I made the decision to stand up and speak out. You should too."
The band released this statement: "We have always considered our audience, on the whole, to be overwhelmingly nice. We have far too many examples in support of this statement to list, and that's well beside the point anyhow. Since beginning, many years ago, we have sought to set and maintain a high moral/ethical standard for ourselves; just as we do for those in our audience who are willing to listen and meet get to know us, apart from our stage personae. Behind the façade of our music, lyrics, and occasional fanfare, beyond the stage, the amps, the drums and the all the other racket, we are utterly average human beings, whose opinions, thoughts, and experiences are extraordinarily similar to those of us without instruments, albums, and press-releases. We have families, partners, and children and a crew (many of whom are female). All this time, we have made an effort to recognize that any of our perceived popularity is likely some net-result or byproduct borne of our passion and love for music. In truth, we truly dislike the idea of separating ourselves, in any fundamental way, from our audience.
"Fact: we have no tolerance for sexism, or any form of intolerant/insensitive behavior. In Baroness' real, functioning touring-world, we are witness to daily proof-by-example that gender exerts no weight on the scales of capability, strength or intelligence. Additionally, we are extremely sensitive to the gender-disparity that can exist, especially within the world of rock/metal music; and we are embarrassed and disturbed that Rosie (or anyone, for that matter) could have had such a terrible experience at one of our shows. (Please note: it is not any more or less important that this abuse occurred at a Baroness show, or even at a show at all.) IT SIMPLY SHOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED. Not in a club, on the street, at home... anywhere. The fact that this happened at a show that we put on brings the story more directly to our ears; and we felt immediately compelled to react. After speaking with Rosie Solomon, and gaining her permission, we decided to share her article. We can only hope, anxiously and hopefully, that someone who needs to read this does so, and pays attention to her story, in order that it might have a positive effect. I promise, not one person amidst the Baroness tour-party would show sympathy for the man in this article. We do not condone and we do not tolerate any form of sexual aggression or intolerance, nor will we ever. The man detailed in this article, whoever you are, if you read this post, stay the fuck away from Baroness and our audience. We don't need you at our show, we don't want you in our audience."
Here are a few bits of her article: "It started about halfway into Baroness' set. I felt something pressing into my leg and bottom. I thought nothing of it at first - it was crowded in there, and I'd be to plenty of gigs before where I'd ended up squashed in the crowd and so I thought it was completely normal. The man behind me was pushing into me in time with the music, but we were all jumping and bouncing and dancing and so I continued to think nothing of it. Until I looked around and I saw that he had plenty of space, and was deliberately thrusting his groin into my leg from behind."
"I was shaken, angry, upset, confused, but - above all - determined. This sort of behaviour (though not as prolonged) had happened to me at a gig before and I hadn't done anything about it and seriously regretted it later. I managed to convey to the venue staff that I wanted the police to be called, and I had calmed down enough to explain what had happened by the time they arrived. I was so worried that they wouldn't take this case seriously, as I had not been physically harmed and I had assumed that a case such as this would pale in comparison next to other things they may have to deal with. I am glad to say that I was completely wrong. The police handled the situation with kindness, tact and determination, telling me that I did the right thing to report the incident, and that what the man had done to me was completely and utterly illegal and wrong. I went with them to the police station where I was given tea, and they talked me through the process of giving a statement. It took a good couple of hours but finally I had a coherent statement that we were all happy with."
"If a person touches you in a sexual way without your consent, it is illegal. You can and should report it to the police, and it will be taken seriously. I made a decision to take action and not to be a passive victim of the situation that I was forced into that night. I am not an object of your sexual fantasy, I am a person and I have the right to see my favourite band live by myself without fearing for my safety. I have the right to go on a night out and not to be touched in unwanted ways. I have the right to walk down the street and not to have abuse yelled at me from the window of a white van. You do too. You have the power to take charge of a situation like mine, like any of these, like your own. I made the decision to stand up and speak out. You should too."
The band released this statement: "We have always considered our audience, on the whole, to be overwhelmingly nice. We have far too many examples in support of this statement to list, and that's well beside the point anyhow. Since beginning, many years ago, we have sought to set and maintain a high moral/ethical standard for ourselves; just as we do for those in our audience who are willing to listen and meet get to know us, apart from our stage personae. Behind the façade of our music, lyrics, and occasional fanfare, beyond the stage, the amps, the drums and the all the other racket, we are utterly average human beings, whose opinions, thoughts, and experiences are extraordinarily similar to those of us without instruments, albums, and press-releases. We have families, partners, and children and a crew (many of whom are female). All this time, we have made an effort to recognize that any of our perceived popularity is likely some net-result or byproduct borne of our passion and love for music. In truth, we truly dislike the idea of separating ourselves, in any fundamental way, from our audience.
"Fact: we have no tolerance for sexism, or any form of intolerant/insensitive behavior. In Baroness' real, functioning touring-world, we are witness to daily proof-by-example that gender exerts no weight on the scales of capability, strength or intelligence. Additionally, we are extremely sensitive to the gender-disparity that can exist, especially within the world of rock/metal music; and we are embarrassed and disturbed that Rosie (or anyone, for that matter) could have had such a terrible experience at one of our shows. (Please note: it is not any more or less important that this abuse occurred at a Baroness show, or even at a show at all.) IT SIMPLY SHOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED. Not in a club, on the street, at home... anywhere. The fact that this happened at a show that we put on brings the story more directly to our ears; and we felt immediately compelled to react. After speaking with Rosie Solomon, and gaining her permission, we decided to share her article. We can only hope, anxiously and hopefully, that someone who needs to read this does so, and pays attention to her story, in order that it might have a positive effect. I promise, not one person amidst the Baroness tour-party would show sympathy for the man in this article. We do not condone and we do not tolerate any form of sexual aggression or intolerance, nor will we ever. The man detailed in this article, whoever you are, if you read this post, stay the fuck away from Baroness and our audience. We don't need you at our show, we don't want you in our audience."
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