‘I’ll do it again’ — topless festivalgoer speaks out
A woman whose “glitter boobs” were groped at the Rhythm and Vines music festival has posted a video saying she’ll go topless in public again.
Madeline Anello-Kitzmiller, 20, paid for the glitter option offered by a body painter at the event in Gisborne.
A video that went viral captured her being groped by a male festivalgoer before she stormed back and slapped the man across the head. Her friend tipped a drink over him.
In a message posted on her personal Facebook page yesterday, Anello-Kitzmiller, from Portland, Oregon, said it wasn’t the first time she’d been assaulted at a music event.
She was groped while fully clothed in a club in her hometown two months ago.
“I promised myself that the next person to touch me like that, I would punch in the face.”
Anello-Kitzmiller said she’d been the subject of online abuse but wasn’t letting the insults upset her.
She said her breasts were “not sex toys . . . they are not an invitation. The problem is not the clothing, stop victim blaming.”
In her online video, AnelloKitzmiller said there had been a “ton of controversy” over her actions and her appearance at the festival.
She was not the only one with body paint.
“I saw plenty of naked men that day getting absolutely no harassment for revealing themselves. So I have to ask, what is the difference?”
Festival organisers said they were disappointed by the incident.
“We do not condone any form of harassment and take these issues very seriously.
“We will continue developing our ideas on how to create a safer and more enjoyable environment for our customers,” they said.