Culture

‘Abusive’ rapper T.I. takes his teenage daughter to the gynaecologist to check her hymen ‘is still intact’

T.I.

Rapper T.I. said he has his daughter’s hymen checked once a year. (Getty)

Today in straight madness, T.I. said that he gets his 18-year-old daughter Deyjah’s hymen inspected by a doctor once a year in an attempt to see whether or not she is virgin.

The rapper made the astounding claim during an interview about parenting on the Ladies Like Us podcast.

When asked whether he’d had the “sex talk” with his daughters, he replied: “Not only have we had the conversation, we have yearly trips to the gynaecologist to check her hymen.”

For the avoidance of doubt, he clarified: “Yes, I go with her.”

T.I. spoke about pressuring his daughter into sharing her medical information with him.

T.I. pictured with his daughter Deyjah (centre) and family.

T.I. pictured with his daughter Deyjah (centre) and family.

“So we’ll go and sit down and the doctor comes and talk, and the doctor’s maintaining a high level of professionalism,” he said.

“He’s like, ‘You know, sir, I have to, in order to share information’ — I’m like, ‘Deyjah, they want you to sign this so we can share information. Is there anything you would not want me to know? See, Doc? Ain’t no problem.'”

T.I. described the doctor correctly explaining that that “there are other ways besides sex that the hymen can be broken, like bike riding, athletics, horseback riding and just other forms of athletic physical activity”.

In response, he told the doctor: “Look doc, she don’t ride no horses, she don’t ride no bike, she don’t play no sports. Just check the hymen please and give me back my results expeditiously.”

Twitter users were horrified, calling T.I.’s actions “humiliating,” “abusive” and “misogynistic bulls**t”.

Many were concerned that a doctor would enable rapper’s “atrocious practice”.

Others pointed out the double standard in T.I.’s attitudes towards his daughter’s sex life and his own (he was famously caught cheating on his wife) and that of his 15-year-old son, who admitted on the family’s reality show T.I. & Tiny: Friends & Family Hustle that he was not a virgin.

Somebody tell T.I.: ‘Virginity tests’ are not a thing.

Dr Jennifer Gunter, gynaecologist and author of The Vagina Bible, was one of many to explain why the idea of a “virginity test” is medically inaccurate.

“The hymen is no virginity indicator, 50 percent of sexually active teens do not have a disrupted hymen. The hymen is often very flexible,” she explained on Twitter.

“The hymen means nothing physically and hymen exams are medically not a thing and are unnecessary. And support a disgusting patriarchal trope.

“If women were supposed to stay ‘virginal’ and keep sex for marriage or sex for reproduction, why have a fully functioning clitoris (only purpose is pleasure) before reproduction is possible? Exactly.”

The World Health Organisation has called for a ban on “virginity testing”, which it says is a human rights violation.

“There is no examination that can prove a girl or woman has had sex – and the appearance of girl’s or woman’s hymen cannot prove whether they have had sexual intercourse, or are sexually active or not,” it said.

“‘Virginity testing’ is a violation of the human rights of girls and women, and can be detrimental to women’s and girls’ physical, psychological and social well-being.

“It reinforces stereotyped notions of female sexuality and gender inequality. The examination can be painful, humiliating and traumatic. Given that these procedures are unnecessary and potentially harmful, it is unethical for doctors or other health providers to undertake them. Such procedures must never be carried out.”

Register to save articles and more. It'll only take a minute and it's free.
JOIN US TODAY!