The revelation that Usher may have exposed several people to herpes is startling news in itself, but that's not what's grabbing everyone's attention today. As you may or may not know, Usher is being sued by several people for not disclosing his diagnosis. At present, two women and a man are suing the R&B legend, which is surprising enough. It didn't take long for the conversation to veer off course, though. Following a press conference delivered today by attorney Lisa Bloom and alleged victim Quantasia Sharpton, discourse quickly shifted from the news itself to something far more shallow: the physical appearance of said victim. 

The internet did not hold back. Although this woman already had to go through the stress of an STI scare, commenters went in, with a lot of people seeming to assume that, due to the alleged victim's appearance, Usher "wouldn't hit," therefore calling the victim a liar. 

Aside from assessing the validity of the victim's claims based on her appearance, others just felt the need to comment on her body in general. 

"Usher" was a trending topic this afternoon, with the peanut gallery that is the world wide web chiming in about "BBWs" left and right. What does this response say about us as a society? Assuming someone is guilty of lying based on their appearance uses the same frame of logic (or lack thereof) that causes adults to think of Black girls as "much less innocent" than white girls. Though the social media justice system may be skeptical, in the actual court of law, your appearance is not cause for a higher burden of proof, and it shouldn't be IRL either. 

This woman already had to endure enough by publicly discussing aspects of her sex life with the entire world. The implication that because of how she looks she must be lying has farther-reaching consequences than meets the eye.