A Fan Groped Harry Styles At A Concert & It's Not OK

Harry Styles was performing at Hollywood Bowl on Saturday night as part of We Can Survive – a benefit concert for breast cancer awareness – when he reached down to high-five lucky members of the packed audience, but instead of taking his hand, one fan went too far and grabbed for his crotch, Us Weekly reports. Soon after, video footage of the disturbing encounter began circulating on Twitter.

"WTF!!! When your favorite artist is close to you, this does not justify you touching him in this way," one Twitter user posted along with the hashtag #RespectHarry.

Another commenter noticed that Styles seemed to "[cover] his crotch" when he approached the crowd on the other end of the stage. Soon, #RespectHarry started trending with fans coming together to denounce sexual assault.

"It's sad that we still have to do these trends cause people still can't respect Harry. Call this what it is. Sexual assault #RespectHarry," one person wrote.

There are numerous men who will be sexually assaulted during their lifetimes. According to RAINN, 1 out of every 10 reported rape victims are men; and the CDC reports that 1 in 20 men will experience some form of sexual violence, aside from rape, at some point. Recently, actors Terry Crews and James Van Der Beek detailed their own harrowing experiences of assault and harassment in Hollywood after reading about the dozens of women who came forward with allegations against producer Harvey Weinstein and director James Toback.

Of course, it's important to remember that assault is not a gendered issue. Queer, non-binary, and trans folks are all vulnerable to unwanted advances and sexual actions. Ultimately, we must be the ones to put an end to all forms of harassment and violence so that we can make the world a safer, more compassionate space for everyone.