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Entertainment July 5, 2017
1 ) Do not sexually assault anyone.
Photo via Instagram / @shondarhimesShonda Rhimes is no stranger to calling people out.
Just recently, the “Grey’s Anatomy” executive producer tweeted Bill Cosby a stern message in response to his publicist’s announcement that he plans to host seminars on avoiding sexual assault. If this is news to you, let’s just say she wasn’t having it.
Rhimes was definitely not supportive of Cosby and his post-mistrial plans.
What did her tweet say?
“From Shonda’s Town Hall on Avoiding Sexual Assault Charges: 1) Do not sexually assault anyone. 2) Shut up – this attention belongs to survivors.”
From Shonda's Town Hall on Avoiding Sexual Assault Charges: 1)Do not sexually assault anyone. 2)Shut up-this attention belongs to survivors.
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) June 23, 2017
Cosby’s publicists Andrew Wyatt and Ebonee Benson took to “Good Morning Alabama” to explain the intended message of Cosby’s proposed town halls, according to CNN. Wyatt and Benson said churches and civic centers inspired the idea. He said they requested Cosby speak out about sexual abuse allegations.
Cosby’s goal according to his publicists? To define what can be considered sexual assault since, as Benson pointed out, laws are changing.
She highlighted her point by referencing that the statute of limitations for sexual assault victims is being extended. According to Cosby’s publicist, “a brush across the shoulder, at this point, can be considered sexual assault and it’s a good thing to be educated about the law.”
There is no official date for when the seminars will be held. However, Wyatt said the plan is a five-city tour in cities like Detroit and Chicago.
After Cosby’s mistrial, Wyatt said, “Cosby’s power is back.”
Many are with Shonda Rhimes. They think the idea of Cosby lecturing others on sexual assault is in poor taste. After all, over 50 women accused the former “The Cosby Show” star of sexual misconduct and assault.
One comment in response to Shonda Rhimes’ tweet read, “Agreed! His smugness with this victory will destroy the rest of his legacy. It was already gone, but he’s murdering Dr.H.Huxtable.”
Some defended Cosby, though, by saying a mistrial is not a guilty verdict. They also questioned how the alleged victims could be survivors if he wasn’t proven guilty.
“I feel like we are forgetting those who have been falsely accused and having their future robbed from them … this isn’t a one sided issue,” one tweet wrote.
Another one said, “You are so right #BillCosby’s reputation will never be the same again and even when he is found not guilty, the damage has already been done.”
you are so right #BillCosby's reputation will never be the same again and even when he is found not guilty, the damage has already been done
— Shan (@Shan1272) June 25, 2017
But this tweet really drove Shonda Rhimes’ point home: “Totally agree. Thank you. Better keep those numbers in mind. 10 of 12, deemed him GUILTY.”
Totally agree. Thank you. Better keep those numbers in mind. 10 of 12, deemed him GUILTY!
— Michele (@mstweed151) June 23, 2017
In her tweet, Shonda Rhimes emphasized the importance of understanding what the survivors went through.
One such woman is Andrea Constand.
The former director of operations for Temple University’s women’s basketball team alleged Cosby made numerous unwanted advances before sexually assaulting her in 2004. Constand said Cosby invited her to his home under the guise of providing career guidance.
Her story then follows that he gave her a glass of wine and three blue pills to “take the edge off.”
The next thing she remembers? Being unable to move while Cosby fondled her breasts and pushed his fingers inside her vagina. And then waking up with her clothes disheveled and leaving.
Vanity Fair reported that she “suffered from nightmares, flashbacks, anxiety, sleeplessness, and depression, and she isolated herself from her friends and her family” after the incident.
Whether Cosby did what Constand alleged or not, there is a serious issue in his understanding of consent. Because of this, he should definitely not be teaching this definition to others in his upcoming town halls.
“I [didn’t] hear her say anything,” Cosby said in the police affidavit. “I [didn’t] hear her say anything. And so I [continued] and I [went] into the area that is somewhere between permission and rejection. I [was] not stopped.”
Cosby said he then went inside of her pants and fingered Constand. “I [did] not talk. She [didn’t] talk. But she makes a sound which I [felt] was an orgasm.”
Consent 101: A lack of no does not mean an implied yes, Cosby.
In fact, prosecutors currently plan to take Cosby back to court.
But we sure hope that until then, if he is going to be teaching others about sexual assault, he freshens up on what consent actually means.
