On 9th June, Rebel Wilson came out on Instagram, sharing a loved-up snap with her new partner Ramona Agruma. Fans were happy for the Australian actress, with comments reading “so proud of you” and “love is love”, although, not all was it seemed at first glance.
It’s not all as it seems
It recently came to light that the choice to share her relationship wasn’t entirely her own. The Sydney Morning Herald’s gossip columnist Andrew Hornery has been accused of forcing Wilson to come out. As reported by the Guardian, he allegedly gave her a deadline to respond to the fact he knew she was in a relationship with a woman. In his column, he told readers he’d missed out on a global scoop and had approached Wilson’s agent for a comment.
First of all, is anyone’s sexuality in the public interest? I certainly don’t think so. Famous or not, no one should be forced to share something personal that they’re not ready to share. The backlash has been huge, with many celebrities and organisations speaking out against the paper.
Rebel Wilson has only dated men before so, if he had published this in his column, he would have outed her. This pressure is enough to make anyone feel they have to speak out and tell their story, before someone else tells it on their behalf.
The backlash
Journalist Kate Doak tweeted out about the situation and Wilson responded, this being her first response to what has happened. She said it was a hard situation that she was trying to handle with grace.
Bevan Shields, the editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, continued the controversy in an editor’s note that was published on Sunday evening.
It read “Like other masthead’s do every day, we simply asked questions and as standard practice included a deadline for a response.”
The claim that the newspaper had done nothing wrong only made people more angry, and rightly so. Rebel Wilson deserves an apology. No one should feel pressured to label their sexuality. In simple terms, it’s none of our business.