People Are (Rightfully) Pissed at ‘The Bachelorette‘ Producers Over Luke P.

From Cosmopolitan

We hate to see it, but it’s true: Bachelor Nation runs on villains. The baddies of each season make headline after headline until they’re finally knocked aside, bringing in more eyes than most people who are “there for the right reasons.” I still have a visceral reaction to hearing the name “Vienna Girardi” and it’s been nine years. But Luke P. was more than a villain: He was emotionally abusive, unstable, and potentially dangerous to those around him.

If all the lying, fist-clenching, and bologna-gate wasn’t enough proof to give The Bachelorette producers pause, his behavior during Fantasy Suite week should have been the final straw. It was for Hannah. There’s something empowering about watching a woman make decisions without letting outside (read: male) voices sway her, so I will give the producers the benefit of the doubt when it comes to keeping him around week after week. But the second he degraded Hannah the way he did that night, he should have been out of her life—and ours—for good.

The kicked-off-comeback is a signature move in Bachelor Nation, but there needs to be a line. When Hannah sent Luke packing originally, her body language was completely defensive. Her arms were hugged tight around her body. She didn’t want to make eye-contact. And still, he would not get in the fucking car. Any woman who has kicked a man out of her apartment recognizes this for what it is: fear. And this is a woman with an entire film crew surrounding her. What the hell makes it okay for the producers to let him into the rose ceremony? It’s not like anyone can just hang out on The Bachelorette set. “No” doesn’t really seem to mean “no” on this show.

Chris Harrison can berate Luke P. all he wants, but he and the producers are just as complicit in Hannah’s discomfort. She shouldn't have had to move the podium, and more importantly: she shouldn’t have had to see him at Men Tell All.

Luke can sit there and take a verbal beating from Chris, The Bachelorette men, and the audience all day long, and it still won’t make up for the way he gaslighted Hannah throughout this process. What’s worse than forcing Hannah to even see his face was making her listen to his bullsh*t apology. You know why she didn’t accept that he’d “learned” from watching the episodes? He was attacking her on Twitter just last week. And again after Men Tell All aired.

Who was this showdown for? It certainly wasn’t for Hannah, and as some have pointed out, it did nothing to help Luke, who clearly needs to work on himself. The only people who benefited were the folks at ABC. Hey, producers! It’s not Hannah who owes us an apology for Luke P. It’s you.

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