Moderator Becca says that the mayor touched her against her will – REFRESHER

The presenter appeals to people to speak up when they witness harassment. Share Save Saved Share Share the article You must be logged in to save the article. Failed to save changes. Try to log in again and repeat the action. If the problems persist, please contact the administrator. An error occurred. If the problems persist, please contact the administrator. Moderator Katarína Balážiová, known as Becca, spoke about the harassment she experienced while moderating. It was a cultural event in Sabinov, during which, according to her, the mayor of the city, Michal Repaský, touched her. Although she tried to pull away from him, he did not stop hugging her around the waist, she describes in a video on Tiktok. According to Korzár from Prešov, several witnesses saw the harassment, the mayor himself denies it. She wanted to pull away Becca describes in the video that during the moderation Repaský ​​hugged her around the waist. “He pushed me to him and continued with his hand to my ass on my side and squeezed me really hard.” The presenter claims that she tried to push his hand away from her side because she was uncomfortable with the situation, but she couldn’t. She did it with two hands – the mayor was holding the microphone at that moment – and therefore she is convinced that he must have felt her resistance. “I don’t know whether consciously or unconsciously, he pushed me even harder,” she said. In the video, he urges people to speak up when they see harassment in their area. It can help the person who is in an unpleasant situation, but also be an example for others who will be encouraged to speak up next time as well. “I think that there have been enough times when someone grabs a presenter at an event, especially if it’s a politician. I understand that recognizing the personal space of other people is often difficult even with people we know. And that’s why I wouldn’t deal with this situation at all and I would understand if the mayor would let me go after my protest, which he didn’t do,” she adds. The mayor denies harassment According to Korzár from Prešov, several people who attended the event saw the unwanted touch. For example, employees of a catering company told the newspaper that the presenter’s resistance was obvious. “During the mayor’s speech, he began to pull Becca towards him with his left hand, to which Becca reacted by obviously pushing him away. But the more she pushed him away, the more he pressed her to him, even his hand went to her ass. The mayor’s behavior towards Becca was completely inappropriate,” they told Korzár. There are no photos or videos that would capture the situation. However, Repaský ​​denies the accusation. He admitted that contact with Becca may have occurred. She wished him a happy birthday and he leaned into the microphone. According to Repaský, Becca held the microphone with both hands. According to him, the contact between them lasted no longer than two seconds and was nothing intense or unpleasant. His words were also confirmed by city deputy Radoslav Ernst, who told Korzár that the entire contact lasted only a few seconds and he did not notice any reaction from the presenter. “If he touched her, it was out of genuine human joy in the situation, but it certainly didn’t look like a sexual act,” he said. Unwanted touching is just one form of sexual harassment. Read what everything belongs to this category and how to defend against it. @beccatojeona When you see something similar happening to someone, don’t be silent 🙏🏽🤌🏽#harassmentawareness #harassment #beccatojeona ♬ original sound – Becca Report an error. If you found a shortcoming in the article or have comments, let us know. Source: sme.sk Preview image: Tiktok/Becca