Over the weekend, Vampire Diaries actor Ian Somerhalder got caught in the middle of controversy for saying in a podcast called “Dr. Berlin’s Informed Pregnancy Podcast” that he “threw out” his wife Nikki Reed‘s birth control pills so she would get pregnant.
He explained that he was determined that it was time for the couple to have a baby, even though Nikki said she “didn’t know if [she] wanted kids,” in which he, “unbeknownst to poor Nikki”, then proceeded to take out her birth control pills from her purse. That’s controlling, and just horrible.
Any woman should be able to have control over her own body, and this story is anything but cute. Stealing and throwing out birth control pills may as well be the same as stealthing, or in other words, the action of non-consensual condom removal during sex.
Naturally, the couple sparked intense backlash over Somerhalder’s irresponsibility and incredibly problematic actions, but Reed responded with an angry tweet:
Dear writer. Here’s my note to you on irresponsible journalism. pic.twitter.com/eiS8M4y3D0
— Nikki Reed (@NikkiReed_I_Am) September 22, 2017
With that said, she did release a milder apology later:
A note from us… pic.twitter.com/3WNmrGYS7M
— Nikki Reed (@NikkiReed_I_Am) September 23, 2017
The story is still shocking to us, but at the very least the couple has come to terms with the implications of the issue, and everyone should be aware.