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Women of Pity Sex and Tigers Jaw Sexually Assaulted Onstage at Same Show

Women Pity Sex Tigers Jaw Onstage Kiss Sexual Assault

We’ve shown some love for Pity Sex and Tigers Jaw in the past, but it’s always been with respectful adoration from afar. It’s never been like this.

Wednesday night at a sold-out show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, an audience member jumped onstage and tried to kiss both Britty Drake of Pity Sex and Brianna Collins of Tigers Jaw during their sets. Aside from being gross, it’s sexual assault. As Stereogum reports, right after the incident, Collins told the crowd: “Just because I’m up here and I’m a girl does not give you the right to touch me.”

Drake weighed in on Twitter.

Collins followed up today with a statement on the band’s Tumblr:

Last night at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, someone came on stage and very forcibly tried to kiss me, and actually did kiss Britty while she was playing. Another person from the tour was kissed while taking a photo… This tour is the first time something like this has happened to me, and I definitely feel responsible to say something.

IT IS NEVER OKAY TO TOUCH SOMEONE WITHOUT THEIR CONSENT. Ever. I felt so upset and violated, as did the others who this happened to.. Touching someone without their consent is not only upsetting for that person, but is also a crime. We all need to respect each other’s space — whether it’s someone in the band or someone crowd surfing. I just want to play music with my friends and I shouldn’t have to be worried whether or not every person stage diving is going to do something like that. I don’t want it to come down to having to say that there’s no stage diving allowed at our shows, but if stuff like this keeps happening and I feel unsafe and uncomfortable when we play, I don’t know any other solution.

So please – DO NOT EVER touch/kiss/grab someone that has not given you consent to do so. You are not entitled to that no matter what the situation is. Be a decent human being and keep your hands to yourself.

– Brianna

This follows the admission from Iggy Azalea — made to a couple of leering radio hosts — that fans have, on multiple occasions, attempted to insert their fingers into her during shows. Last year CHVRCHES star Lauren Mayberry wrote a must-read essay about the misogyny she’s experienced coming from fans online, and it’s important for music fans (an, like, humans) to realize this is a very real and very much ongoing issue. Kudos to Collins and Drake for saying something about it.

Read more here and here.