Dear T.I.,
This week I read an article that said you told a podcast that you take your daughter, Deyjah, to the gynecologist every year to check her hymen. This is to ensure that she is still a virgin. She is eighteen years old, so she has to sign a legal waiver at the doctor’s office so that you are allowed to access this information.
I know you are an American rapper, a very successful one at that. You have a beautiful blended family, many children, a spouse who loves you. You are involved in all sorts of exciting creative projects, and are contributing a great deal to the American music scene.
But when I heard about your insistence on policing your daughter’s body, I did not think of Atlanta, or your songs, or your reality TV show.
Instead, I thought of Egypt during the Arab spring, where the military enacted horrific virginity tests on female protesters and threatened with being charged as prostitutes if they “failed.” This was done to intimidate them and humiliate them, and rob them of their dignity.
I thought of my country, Pakistan, in which girls and women are subjected to a “two-finger” virginity test when being examined for sexual assault, to see if they are virgins or not. This determines their “character” in any ensuing…
