Channing Tatum voices support for the Stanford survivor and consent education
Channing Tatum is bae for a lot of reasons, and the actor’s new comments on sexual violence and consent are further proof that he *gets it.* In a Facebook Live Q&A hosted by Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief Joanna Coles at Cannes, Tatum received an audience question about the Stanford rape case and what can be done to change the culture of violence directed at women and girls. Instead of dodging it, as most male celebrities are silent on the subject of sexual violence, he spoke passionately, opening with the statement, “I think the rape culture is a very real thing.”
Specifically regarding Stanford sexual assaulter/former swimmer Brock Turner’s six-month sentence, Tatum was as outraged as the rest of us: “It’s like if you killed someone and got caught red-handed and just because you went to a nice school and you were a good swimmer, you somehow get a lesser sentence. That just doesn’t make any sense.”
Of course, Tatum recognizes that the issue of sexual violence doesn’t begin with punishing rapists, but rather with teaching and valuing consent at an early age:
Tatum’s points aren’t groundbreaking, but as we can all attest to, they’re worth repeating and reiterating because they’re still frustratingly difficult to get across to, say, judges and lawmakers. And never let it be said that Channing Tatum doesn’t know anything about what actually makes sex, sexy: Consent and respect, and also a little body rolling to “Pony.”
