Regis Philbin Freely Gropes and Embarrases Nicki Minaj on "Live"

In what might have been the most interesting exchange to ever take place in the history of "Live with Regis and Kelly," co-host Regis Philbin maintained a ridiculous level of excitement over guest Nicki Minaj. Said guest, a rapper whose debut album Pink Friday was released last week, was the unfortunate victim of a little old-fashioned sexual harassment as a result.

In a YouTube video that has been widely circulated online, Minaj's appearance on the daytime talk show begins predictably, with the rapper performing her single "Right Through Me." Afterward, Philbin and Kelly Ripa greet Minaj on stage to, presumably, talk about her career. Philbin immediately puts his arm around Minaj's waist and pulls her towards him. It's clear from Minaj's stiffness and refusal to lean back into Philbin that she wants nothing physical to do with the 79-year-old.

The awkward interview continues when he compliments Minaj on the way she dresses. Philbin then reaches down to the hem of Minaj's dress, which hits her mid-thigh, and fingers the fabric before hitting her backside. This warrants a sharp, "Regis!" from Kelly and a "What just happened," from his stunned co-host. But the slight reprimand wasn't enough for Philbin since he then told Minaj that he wished he could "go hard," presumably with her.

Awkward sexual innuendos are one (inappropriate) thing, but grabbing a woman is another, impermissible thing. What happened was sexual harassment, on par with street cat-calling or workplace molestation. The fact that he's older, powerful in the entertainment industry, and did so with a friendly smile does not excuse the behavior. Minaj, of course, is not speaking out on the issue, and I can't say that I blame her. As with many cases of harassment, feelings of embarrassment and shame can override any motives to seek justice. She may also just simply be stunned. After one fan asked her what ran through her mind after the "slapping," Minaj tweeted back, "LOL. I was in shock!"

As with many cases of female victims, some have responded to the video with humor, dubbing the slap "bootygate" and effectively writing it off as the hilarious antics of an old man. One commenter wrote, "Lets see some of you guys pull off the schedule he does at his age. So he forgot himself for a second, not like these [p]erformers aren't making it a point to shake their a$$es in our faces all the time." Others on various sites echoed the sentiments, that Philbin was old and Minaj was asking for it with her style of dress.

I won't say that Minaj doesn't have a sex-fueled image. (Hell, her stage name is meant to sound like the French word ménage, as in ménage à trois.) But there's a huge difference between celebrating your sexuality and inviting any and everyone to partake in your sexuality without permission. Wearing a close-fitting dress, as Minaj did, isn't the same as wearing a "Grope Me" sign. Her body belongs to her and any action or comment about her body should first seek her permission.

In addition, the "forgot himself" meme promotes the idea that men must wrangle their natural sexuality and that provocative dress or action makes it harder to do that. Maybe if our society didn't encourage men to make every location, every situation, and virtually every second an opportunity to express their sexuality with whoever happens to be around via flashing, cat-calling, groping and whatever else, self-control would come more naturally to men like Philbin.

It's understandable that Minaj isn't taking public issue with Philbin. As one blogger put it, her position as a performer made her vulnerable and her livelihood is linked to people like Philbin. But, that doesn't mean that he should not be made aware of how wrong his actions were and be called to apologize and not repeat. If you agree, sign this petition, which calls for an apology from the show's producers.

See the video for yourself, below:

Photo credit: She So

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