If A Man Acted Like Hayley On 'Married At First Sight' They'd Stop Filming
A question of double standards emerged last night during an episode of Married At First Sight when Hayley appeared to force herself onto her 'husband' David, to the point of scratching him on the face.
Following several fights about money while on their honeymoon (Hayley said David's $25-an-hour wage "wouldn't cut it"), David arrived at the group dinner party, sans ring which some eagle-eyed contestants notice immediately.
Opting to not "bad mouth" his 'wife', David waited for Hayley to arrive to give her side of the story, brushing off the fact he's not wearing his ring because it "was too big for his finger."
Excusing themselves to a private room, Hayley tried to patch things up with David, seeming to become rather physically aggressive as David tried to pull away.
"Don't even do that to me," she said pulling at his face, "give me a kiss," which he did albeit reluctantly.
"No, not tonight darling," David responded but Hayley continued to pressure him, pulling at his shirt and appearing to put her hands on his lap. After David insisted they go back into the other room, Hayley asked if he could carry her back in, putting her hands around him and again pulling him in.
"No, no," David insisted. "Not a chance. Ow, don't, don't."
"I know you love it," she said, laughing.
Which begs the question: if the tables were turned, if it was David throwing himself at Hayley to the point of being physically quite aggressive, wouldn't and shouldn't have filming halted immediately?
"It made me really uncomfortable," David said in a piece-to-camera following the incident. Fellow male MAFS contestants treated Hayley's actions more like an inconvenience for David.
While it's true women make up a larger portion of victims of sexual harassment and assault, men experience it too. 1 in 16, in fact.
Hayley's behaviour last night and MAFS' airing of it shows a gross double standard that should be addressed.
whimn.com.au has reached out to Nine for comment.
This piece was published on whimn.com.au on February 13, 2020.