The usher who made headlines for clashing with Kelly Rowland and nearly pushing her to tears at the Cannes Film Festival has sparked debate for doing the same to multiple other women over the weekend, Dominican actress Massiel Taveras and K-pop star YoonA.
While some people thought Rowland was acting like a diva when her incident occurred on May 22, the former Destiny’s Child member said she was “defending” herself towards a woman who crossed a boundary and treated her differently than other stars on the red carpet, alluding to racism.
Shortly after Rowland’s situation, Dominican actress and former Miss Dominican Republic Massiel Taveras appeared to be rushed by the same usher while making her way up the Cannes Festival stairs. Tavares, who was attending the premiere of “The Count Of Monte Cristo” on May 25, also dealt with the security guard putting her arms up, stepping on the train of her dress, and appearing confrontational. However, unlike Rowland, Tavaras’ incident resulted in the actress shoving the guard.
K-Pop idol YoonA barely got a chance to strike a pose on the red carpet during the film festival because the same staffer was ushering her away. Though things didn’t escalate, you could tell YoonA was still visibly frustrated.
As Rowland, and now fans of both Taveras and YoonA have already pointed out, the security guard did not seem to have the same energy with white women.
Colleagues of the Cannes security guard tell the Daily Mail that she was under a lot of pressure during the busy festival despite being the only staffer caught in controversy during this year’s event.
“She was an usher working under a lot of pressure to keep people on the carpet moving so as to stop crowds building up,” a Festival staff veteran said. “Lots of ushers are involved, and they always act professionally and with politeness.”
In reference to Rowland’s incident, they added, “There was no pushing or shoving, or scolding. Security and safety are the priorities, along with keeping to strict timetables set according to contracts — even the celebrities have to stick to the rules. In this case, the usher was certainly only doing her job — she didn’t do anything wrong.”
An X user who claims to be familiar with the Cannes Film Festival says the security guard was doing her job.
“In Cannes, they’re extremely strict about posing ON the stairs ( this is why cell phones are banned because people stood around here for pictures disrupting carpet ). Brands, however, can pay to close it down for their invitees.”
When asked why it appeared Heidi Klum seemed to have received preferential treatment on the Cannes stairs, the X user further explained, “Heidi Klum is a guest of L’Oreal, one of the main sponsors of the festival. MIND YOU I just got back from Cannes, and have walked that carpet a few times with brands and have assisted other talents with their carpets so I know how the protocols go.”
“YoonA was there as the ambassador of Qeelin, which is owned by Kering, the official partner of the festival, but she was still treated like this. i guess money and whiteness come first,” an X user pointed out.
So What Are The Rules At The Cannes Film Festival?
Here are Cannes rules pertaining to arrivals, the red carpet, and the infamous stairs in particular.
Guests and celebrities are required to arrive on time to ensure that the schedule runs smoothly and to avoid any disruptions. Late arrivals will not be permitted. Celebrities are encouraged to briefly engage with media and fans but shouldn’t linger too long.
Celebrities and guests are informed where to stop for photos and where media interactions are permitted.
The Cannes Film Festival has strict guidelines for celebrities and attendees posing on the stairs or near the entrance to ensure a smooth traffic flow.
To keep everything on schedule and ensure everyone has their moment, attendees are only allowed a limited time to pose on the iconic red carpeted stairs. There are designated areas on the stairs where individuals or groups can stop to pose for photographers. These spots are predetermined to avoid congestion. Attendees are expected to keep moving in an orderly fashion.
Though often found on the festival’s website and press kit, red carpet protocol is also said to be provided to media and attendees before the event.
The rules, however, do not seem to explain the reason for Kelly, Masiel, and YoonA’s shared experiences.
Upon returning to Los Angeles on May 26, Taveras took to Instagram to send Kelly Rowland some virtual support.
“Let’s show some love and respect to the extraordinary @kellyrowland a pure soul , a talented, classy, educated woman of color that represents with respect all of US,” she wrote. “I’m impressed how you handled sister, I didn’t now that happened to you first I was very impressed how calm and genteel you wr because in my case I was tired of the abuse , —BLACK WOMAN MATTERS- we are not going to be in silence on situations like that , we need respect , it’s enough. I hug you queen #kellyrowland , thanks for giving us sooo much God bless your heart.”
