INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’ Glamorises Domestic Violence Say Campaigners

By Mark Hawkins
Published on: 04:22 PST, Feb 12, 2015

Fifty Shades Of Grey is a controversially racy new film which you might not have heard about if you’ve been living on another planet.

Although it’s currently courting success based largely on its perceived edginess, not everyone is happy. One group of campaigners “Fifty Shades Is Domestic Abuse” argues that the novel glamorizes abusive relationships and romanticizes the idea of women fixing broken men.

The Twitter bio reads “The original campaign to raise awareness that the 50 Shades of Grey series romanticises domestic abuse. Tweets by Natalie Collins & Emma Tofi.”

Fifty Shades Of Grey, written by EL James, charts a sado-masochistic sexual relationship between Seattle billionaire Christian Grey and demure student Anastasia Steele.

Ahead of the Valentine’s weekend release, campaigners are calling on the public to consider whether they should endorse the movie, and a protest is planned for the movie’s UK premier in London.

Natalie Collins says Fifty Shades Of Grey portrays an abusive relationship and if readers consider Christian Grey’s behavior out of context, it appears alarming rather than alluring.

“Is it romantic when somebody tracks your phone, when somebody knows where you live before you tell them, sells your only means of transport, or buys the company you work for? How can you marry that with being romantic?”

After working to reduce violence against women for a number of years, the books left Collins in a bad way.

“The thing that I would say to people who are reading the books, who are going to see it, is, if he wasn’t rich and very attractive, would this behavior be normal? “We are not against BDSM (bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism), it is the other issues in the books and films which we say glamorize domestic violence. I have spoken to people who have said that he (Christian Grey) was abused as a child and that is why he is the way he is. It is also very dangerous to suggest that people abuse because of their childhood and that women can fix broken men with enough love.”

Collins says that it’s not her intention to prevent people from seeing the Fifty Shades Of Grey film, but she wants the group to make viewers aware of what they may be ignoring.

“It is not about censorship – people have the absolute right to go and watch it – but there is something about the credibility that is given by the number of people who go and watch it.”

Collins expressed further concerns that the franchise has seeped into everyday life, with cinemas hosting “mother and baby screenings” and various Fifty Shades of Grey merchandise being produced. Although not everyone is happy that it all delivers as promised. The group’s supporters have include victims of domestic abuse, some of whom have expressed how distasteful the story is. Followers of the account were asked to post photos explaining why Fifty Shades Of Grey is offensive to them.

Fifty Shades Of Grey is a franchise that will doubtless keep giving, a dream for those who love a smutty pun, but for a number of people its impact will not be empowering on any level.

[Image – Focus Features]

Share this article: ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’ Glamorises Domestic Violence Say Campaigners
London Fifty Shades of Grey
More from Inquisitr