Being a celebrity has its perks – millions of dollars, luxurious mansions, 10 exotic cars in the driveway – but with fame comes an unjust invasion of privacy: the paparazzi.

Paparazzi are hounding shutterbugs waiting tirelessly outside homes, in LAX terminals, on cafe patios and busy street corners – anywhere they might spot a celebrity through the sights of their cameras.

Blogs and tabloids make a fortune from paparazzi photos, which the public finds infinitely amusing. However, this form of entertainment is not so fun for the subjects of those photos, the celebrities, whose personal lives are constantly intruded and sometimes endangered.

Celebrities are people too, and that means they’re entitled to their privacy. But the paparazzi insist that celebrities submit to interviews and photo ops at all times of day.

It’s common today for paparazzi to snap pictures of celebrities performing such mundane tasks as shopping or taking their kids to the beach. All parents, celebrities or not, are entitled to spend time with their friends and family sans pestering from strangers with cameras.

The problems associated with paparazzi have grown with the public’s interest in celebrity children. To address this issue, California recently passed a bill which keeps minor subjects from the focus of commercial photographers.

According to the Huffington Post, the bill also protects children of police officers, judges and any other kids whose parents attract unwanted attention.

According to the BBC News, starting January paparazzi who take pictures or video footage of children without their parents’ consent will receive between ten days and one year in jail and a fine of up to $10,000.

Actresses Halle Berry and Jennifer Garner are among many supporters of the bill.

Berry’s custody dispute with her ex-boyfriend drew significant media attention. According to the Huffington post, paparazzi taunted Berry’s daughter, questioning her about whether she’d see her father again; as a result, both she and her mother were angry and distraught.

Opponents of the bill say it stifles journalists’ ability to investigate celebrity affairs. However, the bill does not bar paparazzi from taking pictures; it simply curtails their conduct in interacting with children.

Aside from privacy, another consideration in passing the bill was the safety of celebrities and their families. This results from the car crash that killed Princess Diana in 1997, an incident for which paparazzi were blamed in large part.

Not only are the lives of celebrities in danger; paparazzi risk their own lives for the sake of their careers. Sometimes they overstep their boundaries, and sometimes their targets target them.

Paparazzi steal personal freedoms and perpetuate false narratives. They deceive for monetary gain without considering how they impact the lives of their subjects. Anti-paparazzi legislation should be standard in every state to protect the lives of celebrities and their families.

-Chelsea Keyes is a sophomore communication major from Tacoma. She can be contacted at 335-2290 or by [email protected]. The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of the staff of The Daily Evergreen or those of Student Publications.