Megan Thee Stallion opened up in a powerful essay for The New York Times focusing on why she uses her voice to speak up for Black women — including herself. Megan, 25, recalled the night in July when she was the victim of a shooting, allegedly perpetrated by rapper Tory Lanez. Questions about Megan and Tory, 28’s relationship status followed the incident, and Megan confirmed in her op-ed: they were not dating.
“I was recently the victim of an act of violence by a man,” Megan wrote. “After a party, I was shot twice as I walked away from him. We were not in a relationship. Truthfully, I was shocked that I ended up in that place.” The same day that Megan’s essay was published, a Los Angeles judge ordered Tory to stay 100 yards away from Megan and not contact her. He was also required to surrender any guns he owns, according to TMZ.
The Los Angeles County DA’s office previously charged Tory with one count of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, one count of carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle, and inflicting “bodily injury” upon Megan. If convicted, Tory faces up to 22 years and eight months in prison. Tory denied wrongdoing on Twitter, writing that “the truth will come to the light” and thanking fans for supporting him.
Her assault made Megan think about violence against women, and in particular, Black women, as a whole. “After a lot of self-reflection on that incident, I’ve realized that violence against women is not always connected to being in a relationship,” she wrote for the Times. “Instead, it happens because too many men treat all women as objects, which helps them to justify inflicting abuse against us when we choose to exercise our own free will.”
She revealed that at first, she was afraid to come forward about the shooting. The public reaction to the incident only proved her right. “My initial silence about what happened was out of fear for myself and my friends,” Megan wrote. “Even as a victim, I have been met with skepticism and judgment. The way people have publicly questioned and debated whether I played a role in my own violent assault proves that my fears about discussing what happened were, unfortunately, warranted.”