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If you google “Nicki Minaj Feminist,” you’ll find a surplus of articles—principally listicles—touting the Queens-born “Queen” for “perfectly shutting down sexism.” Collectively, the outlets celebrate her “feminist, body-positive” messages through Twitter rants, and even place her alongside Beyoncé as a “feminist icon.”And then there are the pieces discussing whether Minaj empowers or objectifies women, the possible hypocrisy of her feminist message.
One kinder story simply labels her an “imperfect feminist,” but a feminist nonetheless.I believe, as women, we’re all imperfect feminists. Perfection implies we can halt growth and stop checking ourselves. But we must consistently grapple with what feminism means going into 2019 and we frequently doubt—as we wrestle with behaviors of ours that may not assume Level 99 feminism—if we can even be relied on to uphold the ideals we feel strongly about. It’s hard, and we often fail to meet our own standards, which leads to a heavy, blanketing feeling of shame. The point, always, is to keep improving and, thus, learning.
But what has Minaj learned? Facing barrages of social media harassment and slut-shaming herself, she seems to have adopted the same methods of hostility and has leveled them against her own critics. In early July, for instance, she messaged LiveCivil culture intern Wanna Thompson over a harmless tweet Minaj wasn’t even tagged in, viciously berating the intern and siccing her notoriously-aggressive fans (known as her Barbz) on her. Thompson received countless death threats and a whirlwind of targeted harassment, all directed by the pop star. The sheer energy Minaj put into the online conversation was indicative of the beginning of a spiral. Thompson later lost her job—her unpaid job—for angering Minaj and the celebrity relished in it.
Of course, such tasteless gloating didn’t come with objection from the media, other musicians and even a few of her own fans. You’d think Minaj would learn her lesson, but she continues to stir up scandalous headlines to this day. She’s gone a little far, if not completely off the rails, by mingling with more than one alleged sex offender. In late July, for instance, Minaj teased her then-upcoming single, “FEFE”, with Takashi 6ix9ine by dropping images of a cartoonish version of the pair sharing an ice cream cone.
But Minaj isn’t just endorsing sex offenders..she’s dating one too.
In case you missed it, 6ix9ine is infamous for more than his clownish appearance. In late 2015, the rapper pled guilty to three felony counts of Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance. A 13-year-old girl. The rapper was 18 at the time, though he’s known to revise history when it benefits him, claiming he was only 17 in an interview with Akademiks. While no sexual intercourse went down (at least, according to 6ix9ine), several disturbing videos of the rapper and another defendant were seized by prosecutors that clearly show a completely nude 13-year-old girl on the laps of both defendants, as well as performing oral sex on one defendant while 6ix9ine stands behind the girl performing thrusting motions and smacking her butt.
Nikki disappointed—and lost—tons of diehard fans for not only displaying no hesitation to work with such a notorious, unquestionably misogynistic figure in hip hop, but also over their budding friendship and her lack of regret over working with him. The rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, was federally indicted last month on firearms and racketeering charges, as well as prevalent gang violence as part of a “criminal enterprise” run by the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods. Hernandez is thought to have taken a real role in multiple shootings, robberies, and assaults in and around Manhattan and Brooklyn.”The guy may finally have to atone for his part in a recent shooting targeting rapper Chief Keef at the W Hotel in Times Square in June. Still, he’s found an ally in Minaj, who also appears on 6ix9ine’s now-delayed *Dummy Boy *album, by saying in an Instagram post following his November arrest: “Danny, I love you and am praying for you, your Mother, daughter & her mom during this time.” Minaj has never once truly addressed her decision to work with the rapper or the monumental backlash she received for it. Even a non-apology would be better than continuous, rambling defenses.
Like I previously said, we’re all imperfect feminists, but there are some rules that are more clear-cut than others.
But Minaj isn’t just endorsing sex offenders..she’s dating one too. The star very recently rekindled with an old flame from her teen years named Kenneth Petty. According to court records acquired by TMZ, Petty was charged with Attempted 1st Degree Rape in 1995 after a 1994 assault in which the, at the time, 16-year-old used a “sharp object” to force his similarly underage victim into unwanted sex. There’s no blurred lines here, no grey area. This was aggressive, attempted rape and assault and he was sentenced to 18 to 54 months in prison but served only four years in a New York State Prison.
After his release, Petty was later sentenced for first-degree manslaughter after shooting a man named Lamont Robinson “with a loaded handgun (sic) multiple times thereby causing his death” in spring of 2002. He pled guilty in early 2006 and served seven of his 10 years, released in 2013 on heavily supervised probation until May 2018.
We don’t know how long Minaj and Petty have been a pair because they just became Instagram official, but his probation for first-degree manslaughter ended just seven months ago. Minaj and her old/new boyfriend allegedly began dating the first time around when was only 16 years old and Petty was 20, which—all things considered—is strange by today’s standards. Minaj would have been 12 years old when Petty assaulted his victim (who remains unnamed and is rumored to have been Petty’s girlfriend at the time). Petty is still a registered Level 2 sex offender, meaning he’s still estimated at medium-risk of committing the same or similar acts of violence against women.
Minaj, unsurprisingly, is paying no mind to the backlash she’s receiving for her odd choice of boyfriend (really? all this drama for a high school fling?). The other day she snapped at her bewildered supporters beneath a fan’s comment on an Instagram post of the couple, declaring “He was 15, she was 16… in a relationship. But go awf Internet. y’all can’t run my life. Y’all can’t even run y’all own life. Thank you boo.” The problem with Minaj’s statement is it devalues the victim’s story. Can you imagine going to the police with a rape charge in 1994? It also implies some other things: that “boys will be boys” (didn’t we learn our lesson from Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony against Brett Kavanaugh?), that being in a committed relationship is a safeguard from sexual violence and rape (marital rape is illegal in all 50 US states and occurs often). TMZ claims she’s even supposedly discussing marriage and kids with Petty. While I can’t fathom being this sprung over some dude I dated as a kid, maybe Minaj is just going through some shit. Or perhaps this is just who she is.
We also shouldn’t forget Minaj’s unusual relationship to her brother, another registered sex offender who was charged in November 2017 for predatory sexual assault on a child younger than 13 (however, he hasn’t yet been found guilty). Minaj shocked fans once by visiting her brother in jail, though Minaj maintains she only went to support her mother. On Tuesday, the rapper continued fervently denying support of her brother, going so far as threatening to sue Daily Mail TV host Jesse Palmer for falsely alleging Minaj does, in fact, support her sibling.
Minaj’s behavior has been a bit scattered lately, regardless of the unusual amount of sex offenders (and drama by proxy) in her life. Recall the seemingly endless Twitter rant Minaj went on a month later, in August, spanning the course of a literal week. It started when Minaj missed out on a No. 1 debut with *Queen. *She responded to loss by accusing the winner, Travis Scott (and his family, Kylie Jenner and even daughter Stormi),Billboard, Spotify, and her own label, Republic Records, of purposely sabotaging her album to keep it from hitting No. 1. In the same week,she compared herself to Harriet Tubman, canceled her NickiHndrxx Tour (citing she didn’t have time to rehearse), dragged Ariana Grande into her drama, and accused Travis Scott’s manager, Irving Azoff, of eliciting a smear campaign against her.
Minaj also smack-talked MTV when the network refused to allow 6ix9ine (sorry to mention him again) to make an appearance during her Video Music Awards performance. She said, in defense of Hernandez, “I want everyone to know my character. I would never ever ever. And it is what it is. The thing with me, when I know somebody there’s nothing you can tell me about them. That’s just how it is. So people have a lot to say because obviously the hate train is in full effect. So I laugh, I don’t give a fuck, y’all can’t stop me. I ain’t going nowhere.” This is less a response to backlash or even a true defense of 6ix9ine—it’s literally Minaj telling her 20.5 million Twitter followers that she knows all about the charges against her buddy, she just doesn’t care, and we can’t make her.
In Mid-September, the former chart topper found herself in the midst of a very real physical brawl between herself and Cardi B during New York Fashion Week’s annual Harper’s Bazaar party. The fight remains inexplicable and that’s even though we all heard Cardi’s take on it since she promptly took to Instagram to assert Minaj insulted her parenting skills and that’s where Cardi drew the line. Such a feud makes it clear that the masses aren’t prepared for more than one top female rapper, pinning women against one another instead of supporting them. It also only served as fodder for fans who were already confounded by Minaj’s eccentric behavior.
Like I previously said, we’re all imperfect feminists, but there are some rules that are more clear-cut than others. Supporting charged sex offenders—men who aren’t just facing allegation, but have been sentenced for crimes against girls and women whose lives were no doubt irrevocably changed—is not an example of good feminism. And ignoring it, issuing nonsensical defenses, is a surefire way to restrict her own growth. No matter what Minaj is going through personally, I can’t back a Queen who is also a magnet for abusive personalities and, worse, doesn’t give a shit.