Coachella Controversy: Man Sparks Outrage After Wearing 'Disgusting' Slogan T-Shirt To Festival

This T-Shirt Worn At Coachella Is Beyond The Pale

You know when you see something that makes you genuinely rub your eyes in disbelief?

This is one of those moments.

A man at Coachella has sparked mass outrage after sporting a t-shirt with the slogan 'Eat, Sleep, Rape, Repeat'.

Managing Editor of Vice, Jemayel Khawaja, spotted the guy and snapped a shot of him looking incredibly proud of his fashion choices, which some argue promotes "rape culture".

While the California-based festival is known for attracting quirky fashion choices, this is a step too far.

Twitter users were quick to share their anger and branded the unknown man's actions as "disgusting" and a "disgrace".

Caitlin Roper, a campaigner for women's rights group Collective Shout, tells HuffPost UK Lifestyle that the fact shirts like this even exist is further evidence that we live in a "rape culture", where crimes of violence against women are trivialised and reduced to the punch line of a joke.

"I’m pleased to see this t-shirt has been condemned, it is a sign that many people are unwilling to accept this type of humour - humour at the expense of women and survivors of rape and sexual violence.

"I’m sure there are people who will argue it’s ‘just a joke’ or ironic, but why are we supposed to accept ingrained misogyny as just a bit of fun?"

She continues: "This is not merely an issue of ‘offence’, it's not about whether individuals are offended or not. The issue is that this is a statement that is openly threatening and hostile to women, in a culture where up to a third of women experience physical or sexual violence at the hands of men."

Roper adds that it's particularly important for men to speak out against these offensive jokes.

"Silence can be interpreted as tacit complicity," she says. "Now more than ever we need men to speak against the degradation of women."

Kendall Jenner

Coachella 2015

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