Katharina Buczek
“This is the kind of stuff that women have to deal with,” one of Ariel’s friends said after learning that Ariel’s assaulter had called her crazy.
Ariel’s video reached 16.6 million people and generated 2.4 million likes. Many commenters supported Ariel’s decision to hold the man accountable.
Despite a plentiful influx of supportive comments, Ariel still did receive hate regarding the situation. Some people accused her of staging the entire altercation, while others blamed her for the way she was dressed.
Ariel made a follow-up video to address these concerns and provide an update on her police report.
“First off, no, it was not staged. That is the most insensitive thing someone could say in response to that. I pressed charges, and this is the report,” Ariel said while holding up documentation.
“Next, there are a lot of comments that are literally the reason why women do not speak up for themselves. It is wild to me some of the things that come out of people’s mouths. It makes people not speak up when people are gaslighting you or victim-blaming or making an excuse for someone that just touched you,” Ariel continued.
After addressing these all-too-prevalent responses toward victims of assault, Ariel did say that her assaulter was caught.
“The security…detained him while I pressed charges, and they questioned me. But, they could not just take him to jail right away. So, he was detained, and then he was let go,” Ariel explained.
Still, even after her first follow-up video, Ariel continued to receive comments questioning her story. Ariel shut down these allegations and posted a third video to share how her assaulter confessed and was arrested by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
“The guy confessed. He was arrested yesterday, and this is all public information. So, let’s stop victim-blaming women, and let’s start making it a safe place for people to come forward with things like this,” Ariel said.
“There is clearly a big gap in education or how people are raised. But literally, it’s consent. Don’t touch another person,” Ariel finished.
