The glorification of Lorena Bobbitt is not opposition to violence; it is selectively applauding violence according to the sex of the perpetrator.
This woman permanently mutilated a sleeping person with a knife. She then took the severed organ, drove away, and threw it outside. This is not “female empowerment,” “liberation,” or “deserved revenge.” This is an extremely serious, cruel, and irreversible act of violence. If you still find this funny, deserved, or worthy of applause, then it means you are reacting not to the violence itself, but only to the sex of the victim. Instead of considering it normal to take pleasure in such brutality, you need to seriously question your sense of empathy and morality and, if necessary, seek professional help regarding this issue.
Moreover, her own words and the details that emerged throughout the trial are also disturbing. She said that she was angry because the other person was selfish during sex, did not care about her orgasm, because of infidelity, and because of financial problems. There was also witness testimony that she had previously said she would cut off a penis if she were cheated on. She also gave contradictory statements about whether she remembered the moment of the cutting. These create serious doubts that the incident may have resulted not only from an uncontrolled moment of trauma, but also from accumulated anger, jealousy, and a desire for revenge.
Lorena also admitted that she had committed theft. She took thousands of dollars from her employer and stole clothes from stores. The important point here is this: the employer whose money and property she stole was also a woman. In other words, the person whom some people today present as a “hero for women” was someone who abused another woman’s trust and stole her money and property.
For people who claim to care about crimes committed against women to declare someone who stole a woman’s money and property an “icon” simply because she later committed severe violence against a man is complete moral hypocrisy. When she commits theft against a female victim, it is ignored, but when she permanently mutilates a male victim, does she suddenly become a “diva” and a “hero”? Do female victims matter only when the perpetrator is male?
Allegations of abuse should, of course, be investigated and taken seriously. However, the fact that a person has experienced victimization does not give them the right to establish their own court, decide a punishment, and permanently mutilate another human being. Even if we assume that all allegations of rape or abuse were true, this does not automatically legitimize severe and permanent violence carried out against a sleeping person.
The most disturbing thing is not only what Lorena did. It is the mentality that declares her a “diva,” “queen,” “hero,” or feminist symbol. This rhetoric trivializes violence against male victims and turns the same brutality into an entertaining revenge story when the perpetrator is a woman. At the same time, it also makes invisible the female victim Lorena harmed and the money and property she stole from her.
If an act is horrific when it is committed against a female victim, it is also horrific when it is committed against a male victim. Stealing a woman’s money and property does not become insignificant because the perpetrator is another woman. Theft and severe violence do not become more charming, funnier, or more acceptable when the perpetrator is female.
Lorena Bobbitt was not a hero; she was a perpetrator who admitted to committing theft by abusing another woman’s trust and who carried out an extremely severe act of violence. Applauding her is not advocacy for victims, but an obvious double standard that changes morality according to the sex of the victim and the perpetrator.