Bill Cosby’s Accusers: You Really Think 15 Women Are Lying?
- belle
- 3 months ago
- featured-post, Newest, Small Box
- 28 Comments
I need an explanation.
I, probably like you if you’ve come here to read this, have been following the growing allegations of rape against Bill Cosby. Fifteen women have accused him of rape- six publicly- and networks and content distributors are sprinting to distance themselves from him.
Time and Vulture have compiled comprehensive timelines of the rape allegations against him- beginning in the 1960s- and it’s as damning as the Village Voice expose on R. Kelly. It’s bad. Real bad. Joe Jackson.
Despite the number of women- FIFTEEN- who have made allegations over the years, despite the similarity of their stories over decades, there are many who just can’t fathom that Cosby has committed these crimes. The go-to argument seems to be, “but why now?” They wonder why, if these women were drugged and raped, why they waited a year, or years, or a decade or longer to come forward.
To which I ask, why not now?
Given Cosby’s celebrity and iconic status (before The Cosby Show, he had the distinct honor of being the first Black man to have a lead role in a primetime series) and wealth and lawyers, and the way the stories of FIFTEEN* women with similar stories are being disbelieved now, and the way these women are being dragged as groupies or “party girls” (as if girls who “party” can’t be raped), I don’t get how anyone could not understand why these women would remain silent.
Rodney King got beat ON VIDEO which we all saw and the cops who did it still went free. (The LA riots, remember?) These women- young women when these crimes occurred- don’t have video. They have stories. About one of the biggest names in show business, who still, in 2014, facing allegations that he has raped 15 women, is spoken to by journalists with deference and respect and soft-ball questions.
It’s a respect not given to Joan Tarshis, one of his accusers, who showed up for a CNN interview and was publicly questioned by anchor Don Lemon as to why she didn’t bite Mr. Cosby’s penis in self-defense. Really? No one asked Lemon why he didn’t bite or clench when he said he was molested as a boy.
You can’t understand why a woman, why many women would hesitate to put themselves in the position to be a national spectacle and have their entire sexual history dragged across headlines? In the 80s when Cosby was in his professional prime and untarnished by the respectability politics rantings that garnered him so many side-eyes before all this? Add to that, we are talking about women were allegedly drugged, then assaulted with fleeting memories of what occurred and they are confused and hurt and embarrassed and humiliated.
“I didn’t go to the police because i was 19 years old,” Tarshis explained in that horrible CNN interview with Lemon. “I was scared and I thought nobody would believe me. I’m a 19 year old girl and he was Mr. America.”
I get it. But what I don’t get is the people who do mental contortions to defend Cosby from fifteen accusers. It’s beyond basic logic. As Ta-Nehisi Coates summed it up (so brilliantly) over on The Atlantic:
“A defense of Cosby requires that one believe that several women have decided to publicly accuse one of the most powerful men in recent Hollywood history of a crime they have no hope of seeing prosecuted, and for which they are seeking no damages.”
And further:
“The heart of the matter is this: A defender of Bill Cosby must, effectively, conjure a vast conspiracy, created to bring down one man, seemingly just out of spite. And people will do this work of conjuration, because it is hard to accept that people we love in one arena can commit great evil in another. It is hard to believe that Bill Cosby is a serial rapist because the belief doesn’t just indict Cosby, it indicts us. It damns us for drawing intimate conclusions about people based on pudding-pop commercials and popular TV shows. It destroys our ability to lean on icons for our morality. And it forces us back into a world where seemingly good men do unspeakably evil things, and this is just the chaos of human history.”
Welp.
*I emphasize the number because it’s unfathomable to me that fifteen people could accuse the same man of similar crimes of rape and be disbelieved. If we were talking abut FIFTEEN people identifying the same person who robbed a bank, it would be a foregone conclusion, not an ongoing discussion about whether the accused, did in fact, rob said bank.
About Author
Affectionately known as "Belle”, Demetria L. Lucas is the author of two books— A Belle in Brooklyn and Don't Waste Your Pretty; the creator of the award-winning personal blog ABelleInBrooklyn.com; and the founder of Coached By Belle, a boutique life-coaching service, where Demetria helps clients solve their dating dilemmas and build healthy relationships. Demetria is also a contributing editor for The Root, where she pens two weekly columns, and is a contributing writer for the websites of The Grio, XO Jane, Essence, Clutch, Vibe Vixen and Uptown. She was also the star of Bravo TV's docu-drama series, "Blood Sweat & Heels"
I hate how social media and everything makes us rush to find someone guilty so quickly. Michael Jackson was called a child molester until the day he died and soon after so many of those kids say their parents forced them to lie. A lot of these women are saying they went to Cosby because they wanted to be famous and none of them really are. it seems weird, unsettling -something isn’t right about any of it.
Great post! I felt the same… the sheer volume of women is something that cannot be easily dismissed. I do not know if they are ALL being honest, but what I do believe is “where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”
Semi-sidenote: I understand why, but I can’t help that I am a little saddened by the fact that The Cosby Show was pulled from TV Land. The show is classic and a HUGE part of American (especially black American) popular culture. I won’t be burning my DVDs
Lots of women also reported the same thing during the Salem Witch Hunts. Volume is nothing. Cosby is still rich for 1 or for 1000. Sentencing via public opinion and tabloids is a gross societal evil that should not be condoned or tolerated in a civilized nation with laws.
This is just a sticky situation for everyone involved. If Mr. Cosby did do those thibg s he should definitely be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. I just can’t understand why networks are pulling their deals without any proof. How can you prove this took place? What hapoened to innocent until proven guilty. We all know that people can be opportunists especially when money is involved. They can just be women scorned. Why did some of these women settle out of court? If you were indeed drugged and raped no amount of money should silence you? Who knows? And on the flip side Mr. Cosby you need to speak up! These are serious allegations against you. I just hope the truth can somehow be brought to life.
You say you can’t understand why networks are pulling “deals”, then you go on and state that “people can be opportunists… when money is involved.” You don’t see the incongruency there?
Speaking from experience, some would have referred to me as a “party girl” in college… and I was date raped on campus. I have not pressed charges or even disclosed the incident to more than a couple of my closest friends. When the guy is generally likeable, popular, etc., it seems almost impossible that anyone would believe your story or that you didn’t bring it on yourself for hanging out with them in their dorm room, flirting, etc. You can even convenience yourself that you led them on and it was a misunderstanding… and try to normalize it by remaining friendly/cordial on campus and at mutual friends’ events. BUT if 15 or 20 years from now, more women come out and say they he did the same thing to them, I can’t promise that I would remain silent. Even if I have moved passed it, It would be apparent that I wasn’t the exception, it wasn’t a misunderstanding, this guy is not a generally good guy that F-ed up one time, and there is strength in numbers… people might believe it now.
Ironically enough, he is a local comedian :/
They way they are being treated is exactly why they didn’t say anything at that time and some never will. The same way when the police come knocking on your door asking if you heard the shots and saw who fired the gun. Your natural response is no I didn’t see anything because you still have to leave next to the killer while the police ho home to a different neighborhood. Also if you did tell what you saw sometimes the police tell on you and now you are labeled a snitch or retaliated against.
Statistically speaking, it’s an absurd notion that 15 women would lie about being sexually assaulted by one man. Put it this way: If you flip a coin 15 times, it will land either all 15 heads or all 15 tails roughly .003 percent of the time, i.e., ALMOST NEVER. That’s when the probability of heads (truth) or tails (lie) is 50 percent.
Studies show that anywhere between 2 and 10 percent of women lie about sexual assault (so roughly 90 to 98 percent tell the truth about such incidents). The probability that 15 women lie about one man sexually assaulting them is so ridiculously microscopic that Bill Cosby should just walk up to a jailhouse and ask for a jumpsuit.
It makes even the thought that ALL of these women could be lying, and that Cosby is innocent, nutty as hell. But that’s what fame and celebrity buy you: a lot of nutty people who believe in you at all costs for no logical reasoning.
So let me ask you this:
When Hannibal Buress did that routine again (that he has done for months) and it was shown on social media, what if one woman came forth, telling the story of her affair with Bill Cosby, and he wouldn’t give her hush money. Then other women took her story of being drugged and raped, and made their own versions. That’s why only SIX came forward… ONE has admitted to lying in 1990 when she said Sylvester Stallone got her pregnant, amongst other things. So 9 other women are staying quiet, because they want to silently jump on the money train.
Couldn’t that be a possibility? Because the ONLY consistencies about their stories were drugged and raped. It’s not like they were all locked in separate rooms and gave their stories. They heard EACH OTHER’S ACCOUNTS! You strike while the iron is hot! If Bill wants to silence people, well then he will include you in the payout because he wants this to end.
Why are people ignoring the women saying he was a gentleman to them? Why aren’t the media outlets reporting all the women saying that he wasn’t a creep? They instead follow the sensational news from failed actresses who probably blame him because they gave him “some” and he didn’t get them jobs. That’s why they kept going back… consensual sex to help make it in the industry, and he reneged on his deal… so (as Carla Ferragno said) “put the final nail in his coffin.”
Well…thanks for that because Using YOUR Logic then STATISTICALLY THERE IS NO WAY THAT NONE OF THEM WOULD HAVE GONE TO THE POLICE. IT IS possible if there is a conspiracy….If you want to know if there is a conspiracy you have to THINK …which is the skill of a dying breed. Hows this for thinking?…there is an article in the daily caller that states that the former MANAGER of Beverly Johnson said that Janice Dickenson and Beverly Johnson L-I-E-D about Cosby. NOW….IF THAT ARTICLE IS NOT BEING DISSEMINATED in the major media, then KNOW that there is a CONSPIRACY. And dont tell me “WELL THATS UNSUBSTANTIATED” Because these women’s CLAIMS are JUST AS UNSUBSTANTIATED TOO. Someone is trying to ruin the mans reputation and someone who controls what is printed/reported has something to do with it.
And to say they didn’t come forward … Some of them did but nothing was done! The issue is only peeping up out the grave because a comedian did a bit about it that went viral. The women did NOT bring it forward to the spotlight in 2014… we did!
And so now these women are being contacted, interrogated, doubted and attacked for something they tried unsuccessfully to get justice for years ago. The statute has run out. Sorry Bill… But you are not Dr. Huxtable (or the one we knew anyway) … And that’s a shame, but I’m not going to be your accomplice by shaming these women.
I’m really so glad you wrote this Belle. I was getting so disheartened by the dragging of these women. It’s a damn crying shame and I’m so tired of a world where sexual assault victims get this sleugh of questions—not for better understanding, but for condemning. It’s why so many rape victims don’t com forward. We let them down almost every time in this way.
You and the so call Belle…needs to stop being programmed by the media and do your research on the origin of this.. start back with Cosby’s attempt to purchase NBC in 1992…
The headlines come out and you all run withit..you ask no questions, you don’t ask why, you do not apply logic to anything. ..which is why we will always be little puppets on a string.
Guess what, if you tell a lie enough times people will start to believe it.
The thing is most of these women are claiming to be drugged all the time….but yet they also claim that they were having relations with him..and you little puppets buy it.
Black people will never get ahead with people like you.
15 women saying something is not evidence they copy the story and make it their own…The only reason you are hearing these women, is because the media is not verifying or checking these stories…it is open season…anyone wants to say Cosby raped them….come on up tell your story let’s make him look real bad…anyone nd we don’t care if you are lying…
If someone said your husband, son raped them would you ask questions? If it were 15 women who came to you 30 years later would you just take their word for it? I bet not.
How about you tell these women…to go workhard…and stop sleeping with married men to boost their careers…
Read The Tawana Brawley, story..she lied and had the world in an uproar…Every one believed her and she lied…There are hundreds of these cases.
I was a victim. ..and I reported it….These women are not victims they are parasites.
These
My momma had a saying growing up “every bodies not gon tell the same lie” in other words there’s no way 15 women can have identical allegations against this man. Furthermore Bill Cosby is very judgmental I always believe when ppl are so quick to shine light others wrong it’s because their own closet is full of doo -doo!
I’m not going to take sides on this because I don’t know what the truth is….yes, he has admitted in the past to cheating on his wife, and he did settle with one woman who claimed he drugged and raped her. However, does this mean he assaulted all of these women that are now coming forward? Are they really credible? You have Janice Dickinson who wrote in her autobiography years ago that they never had sex, and that when she rejected him he brushed her off. She stated this in both her book and in an interview. Now years later she’s saying that he raped her? I don’t get it…I mean at least be consistent in what you’re saying…also, what about the other women who claimed he raped them, but they continued to see/go out with him, after the fact? And accepted money and gifts from him…If I were raped, I wouldn’t want to have anything at all to do with the guy. Period. I don’t care who you are. And then, if you felt that you were drugged, wouldn’t you seek medical attention? Get any kind of testing done? Who cares if you’re believed or not…at least there’s some record of it. So I’m not going to be so quick to just believe all of this with no definitive proof. He has never been charged, arrested….And the statute of limitations have run out on most of these accusations if I’m not mistaken….And what exactly are they expecting him to say about it? He’s not obligated to say anything. If he does say something everyone will just tear it apart anyways. So he’s staying quiet, which he has every right to do unless he ends up going to court. But he’s already been tried in the court of public opinion which is unfortunate….Innocent until proven guilty. Period
You are one of the only ones making sense.
How about we go around executing people because someone said we did something. ..and there is no evidence or proof. All you have are 15 women who have been given a pass by the media to say something about the man that has not been proven in a court of law. The media is not vetting these women because the agenda is to destroy his legacy and image.
To date 5 of those women were proven to be lying…
The first woman who went to the police first went to sell her story to the Philadelphia newspaper… then a year later after she claimed it happened, she then went to the police…isn’t it a coincidence that she reports this when she knows there would be no evidence of this.
And none of them ever reported this to authorities, but yet they can run to the media and the tabloids for a check?
Where in the history of the world have you heard of a man lynched because of some mere accusations that cannot be proven? That was never even determined in a court of law?
That is quite unfair and a disgrace..
Women use rape against men all the time…thousands of men have been victims of false rape accusations. .And what happens to these women? Nothing.
How many people believed the lie about weapons of mass destruction? Millions…was it true? No.
So this bullshit…that 15 women said it do it must be true? That is BS.
If someone rapes you or drugs you…U don’t continue a relationship w I th that person..what hi does that? That does not add up.
And the one claiming that she was trying to tell her story for years??? BS…She claimed that she told her agent and her lawyer and they did not believe her …how about going to the police BITCH…which is what rape victims do…
No instead she kept going back..getting her bills paid, tuition, rent and flying to different cities to meet him….she sounds more like a kept woman ….and things did not work out…
And people stop saying these women were young …bullshit, the first one said she was 31 at the time. ..and no the one claiming to be 17..she turned 18, then 19, then 20, then 21….still she continued.
There stories are bullshit.
Another thing I want to add:
Hannibal Buress had done this routine several times over the past few months… why hasn’t anyone said anything until NOW? This is the SAME week the President announces his immigration reform, AND the Grand Jury decision on Ferguson. This is the SAME week the National Guard was called to Ferguson ahead of the decision… don’t you think this is typical media distraction?
If Gloria Allred refused to take this woman as a client years ago because of her story having holes, and no one having proof, then why all of a sudden is the media so interested in this? Coincidence?
This is America, where there are frivolous lawsuits every day. This is America, where the media controls our emotions. Most importantly, this is America where men can accuse John Travolta of sexual battery two years ago, and no one cares, but let a white woman accuse a black man of “multiple rape incidence and her keeping quiet for 40 years,” and everyone believes them.
John Travola’s case: Oh the accusers are lying. He was in Grease!
Bill Cosby: Well, I mean, he told black men to pull up their pants, and he is too nice so something had to be up… maybe they are telling the truth.
The media proves to be racist. And black people, like slaves on a plantation, always agrees with the master.
Yes…
You are so right…The media sells them a story and they jump on the bandwagon and believe it…
No one asks questions. .No one cares to ask why?
And those who really think this all started up because of some no name comedian saying some..give me a break…
The man has always been about showing and presenting black people as educated…and in a positive light. .The media has always portrayed us as robbers, gang bangers, drug dealers, baby mamas, uneducated etc…BILL Cosby mission was to change that…that is the reasons for his talks to call us to be responsible and stop blaming the man…He wanted us to create positive change by starting with our selves….
In 1992 he attempted to purchase NBC when it was for sale…they told him it was not for sale then turned around and sold 51% to Comcast…him and his lawyers continued to try and then guess what…His son gets murdered, then a woman claims to have had a child with him…which was proven to be untrue…However he admitted to having an affair. …All of what is happening now has a connection to him attempting to gain control of the media…
The powers that be does not want this….He was about to come out with a lot of programming etc…that was a part of hi attempt to uplift the black community. .guess what many want things to remain the way it is…to benefit the interest of the corporation.
We need to stop letting the media control our vison…ask questions and ask for evidence of this before you go jumping on the bandwagon. ..asks that is exactly what they want us to do.
And like little puppets we fall for it and …that as why we all always be under the control of white supremacy.
White
Yes, I think they’re lying. Here’s why..
Consider a few things.. 1) male celebrity 2) time period 3) drug use
How many male celebrities get accused of things like rape, fathering a child, and more.. by women looking for an easy pay day. Let’s not act as if this doesn’t happen often. Being Bill Cosby, I would bet a fortune they all gave it up willingly expecting a favor in return. And, hear me clearly. I am not saying Cosby didn’t do anything with these women. I’m betting he did do something, probably a lot with a lot more women. But, rape is not something Cosby needs to do.
Then, look at the time period. Drugs flowing everywhere. Cocaine , liquor, marijuana, acid, PCP, prescription pills, etc. Everyone was doing something back then, ESPECIALLY in the tv/movie industry. We’d all be fools to act as if it drug use wasn’t rampant. Who really thinks Cosby needed to drug anyone to have sex with them?
Come on.
Since everyone has an asshole, here’s my obvious opinion.. women were coming at Bill Cosby often for that big break. Most celebs go thru this. Even straight men are out there taking loads in the mouth for a part. Who’s dumb enough to call that a lie? These women sold their “talents” for favors. Bill Cosby probably did take advantage of them. Got the buns and sent em packing. When they didnt get their favors, they cried rape. To this day, they still cry rape b/c they’re still kissed about getting used and tossed to the side.
I definitely don’t believe any of these women. I think they’re old school hoes with some old world shame and the only way they can find redemption is to keep up a lie.
I’m not confused by the count. In fact, I’m surprised it’s not higher.
And, then just listening to their stories doesn’t help their cases at all. I hope Bill Cosby does speak out b/c I’m guessing he’d crush every last one of these broads if he even remembers them from the number of hoes that spread their legs for his favor.
And can we also add to the fact that out of 15 women, not one of them went to the police after it happened? That’s what I find hard to believe. Not one.
It is not hard to believe if you understand how systematic white supremacy works. There is a model who lied back in 2004, but has since come forward (FYM blog) to admit to being offered a bride to sabotage this man’s career. These women have everything to gain now (books, movies, $500,00 interviews like Darren Wilson) and absolutely nothing to loose. They are just pawns and unfortunately Bill has become one in this game as a white supremacist will typically look for very wealthy black men and find a way to isolate them from their community like they did Bill in 2007, then once he no support of the Black community, they use the sex scandal trick like they did with Michael. Understand that if someone were to investigate further and stop believing the media, we would find that either Bill had some major purchase in the horizons, or nearing time to pass his massive wealth down, which is what a white supremacist will never allow if they can help it. Michael bought Elvis and Beatles catalogs, that really upset them, and the sex scandal did not work for them, so the next step was to kill him. We have to learn to stop believing the media because all that they have been doing is perpetuate white supremacy by making sure that they only cover stories of the black man as the thug, rapist, or monster. Use that third eye people. There are more black men coming with this. Keep your eyes open and watch how this plays out.
Well said.
Bill Cosby has been so successful in cultivating a benevolent, fatherly, and humorous persona especially as Dr. Huxtable that there are folks of all races, especially black folks, who are reluctant to believe the stories of his predation. They keep alluding to the fact that a black man in the 1960’s being accused of raping white women would have had his head handed to him. While that was true for the most part, Cosby was an exception both because of the persona he adopted and because of his ability to squelch any negative portrayal of himself. He came across as non-threatening, as far from the scary black man stereotype as he could be and pretended to be a mentor which was how he roped those women in. People who say the women waited too long either don’t know or choose to overlook the fact that they tried to make their stories known but were not believed by anyone including law enforcement officers. One woman’s lawyer actually laughed at her in disbelief and her agent didn’t believe her either. I believe that until Burris’ comedy act went viral on social media, the stories remained in the background. If the accusers had wanted to get together to ruin Cosby, what took them so long? He’s a victim of nothing but his own arrogance, sense of entitlement, and hypocrisy, and stories about his predatory behavior have been circulating for years in the entertainment world.
Is there physical evidence? I’m sorry but you need more than hearsay by 10, 50, or 1000 alleged victims to ruin a man’s life. Talk is cheap.
Do you seriously believe that there is always physical evidence of crimes? We know that black women were repeatedly raped in slavery, and although they and their assailants are long-dead, we have no problem accepting that the accounts of their rapes are true. I would say that paying off numerous women, as well as the testimony showing a pattern of behavior for him, along with the accounts of fellow entertainers who say they knew of his behavior for years, count as “evidence.” I would also count the copies of money orders that Frank Scotti handled to facilitate these payments, as evidence as well. I love the way that folks are caping for a fair trial and “due process” for a man who has been making it is business to stay OUT of courts. He had the chance to clear his name in court when Andrea Constand sued him back in 2005, and 13 of the accusers who had no chance of financial gain agreed to testify about their own experiences in support of her. Instead, he opted to settle out of court under a non-disclosure agreement that prevents her from speaking about the case. He also decided to trade a story about his own daughter’s drug addiction in order to keep one about his predatory behavior out of the news. Anyone who still thinks he’s innocent at this point in time has either not been paying attention or has an emotional investment in protecting what is only an image as opposed to the real man.
Women would never lie about being a victim of crime LET ALONE something as heinous as rape and it’s clearly part of the misogynist, slut-shaming rape culture patriarchy to slander these true warriors the same way they did Wanetta Gibson, Crystal Mangum, Susan Smith, Victoria Price and Ruby Bates.
I would like to hear some rational explanation of why Cosby has been paying off women for years, and even had a former employee named Frank Scotti facilitate those payments if he’s innocent. If he wanted due process of the law, he’s had ample opportunity to go to court. Even now, he could sue these women for slander if he’s innocent. What about fellow comedians who’ve known of his behavior for years? He’s even paid news outlets in the past, or threatened them, in order to keep the allegations about him out of the news. In one case, he paid Andrea Constand, the director of women’s basketball at Temple University, because she was going to file a civil lawsuit against him for assaulting her. She went that route after the D.A. declined to press criminal charges against Cosby because he didn’t feel he could prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. This was in 2006, and 13 women were prepared to testify about their own experiences with him in support of her. But because he decided to settle with Constand under a non-disclosure agreement, they didn’t get to testify. We need to stop thinking of rapists as scary, easily identifiable people, and keep in mind that predators hide in plain sight and often have a kind, trustworthy facade.
I believe Bill Cosby is a rapist. There is no race card to be played. If you don’t get his guilt by now you never will.
Bill Cosby Rapist. Every time I see Cosby I see a monster, a rapist. Hugh Hefner is also a likely serial rapist accomplice in many of the Cosby Rapes. I will relentlessly pursue rapist Bill Cosby, Cosby accomplices, Cosby supporters and the Cosby family. This is not a threat, this is a promise. Let’s be clear, they own this.
WHY! VICTIMS MATTER! These victims represent our families, our children, daughters, wives, mothers and sisters.
#billcosbyrapist