Controversial Photos Of Glee Star With A Black Eye To Benefit Domestic Abuse Charity

The internet was all abuzz after a whole series of photos of Glee actress Heather Morris —with a fresh-looking shiner— surfaced, causing many to wonder what the photographer was trying to say.

Now they don’t have to.

Photographer Tyler Shields said he didn’t mean it to come off “that way” and that he will be auctioning off one of the photos to benefit a domestic violence charity:

Shields told TMZ that glamorizing violence against women was not his intention, and “he’s sorry it came off that way.”

The starting bid for the Glee star’s black-and-blue mug is set at $100k, with 100% of the proceeds going to charity.

I think part of the problem here is that the photo was of a woman with a black eye —and you know, being strangled by an off-screen hand holding an iron.

We can see a photoshoot of a male model/actor with a black eye and we assume he’s tough, he’s been in a fake-photoshoot fight of some kind and it’s attractive somehow. But since the rates of domestic violence against women are far higher than the rates of violence against men, it’s a whole different ball game.

If photos like this are left open to interpretation, they’re bound to do more harm than good —as we see so many images of victims of abuse who are glamorized or sexualized in some way— that it’s surprising and disheartening that people don’t think twice before taking their chances and assuming the public will know they ‘totally didn’t mean it that way’.

Follow Up of the Day: Controversial Tyler Shields Photo To Be Auctioned Off [TheDailyWhat]