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Actress Gabrielle Union took to Twitter on Friday to blast Bill Cosby supporters who claim the former beloved TV dad-turned-sex assault convict is the victim of money-hungry accusers looking for a payday.
Union wrote that she sued her former employer for negligence after her rape by a former employee, and no one ever pointed a finger at her for using her trauma to make money.
“I was raped at 19,” tweeted the 45-year-old actress. “He rapes another woman B4 he turns himself in. He took a plea deal & got33 years. I sued Payless Shoe Source 4 $$$ as they knew the rapist was a former employee & didnt warn any1. I received a settlement. NO ONE has EVER accused me of using my rape as a cash grab.”
Union, the star of the upcoming Breaking In, sent out the tweet one day after a jury in Norristown, Penn., on Thursday convicted the longtime comedian and actor on three counts of indecent sexual assault for drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Costand, a former employee of the Temple University women’s basketball team, at Cosby’s home outside Philadelphia in 2004.
I was raped at 19. He rapes another woman B4 he turns himself in. He took a plea deal & got 33yrs. I sued Payless Shoe Source 4 $$$ as they knew the rapist was a former employee & didnt warn any1. I received a settlement. NO ONE has EVER accused me of using my rape as a cash grab
— Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) April 27, 2018
READ MORE: Gabrielle Union points out racial elephant in #MeToo movement
As scores of women stepped forward with similar stories of being drugged and then assaulted by Cosby, now 80, apologists have stepped forward too, claiming the case was a conspiracy to bring down a powerful Black man in America.
Last year, Union told People that she was raped at gunpoint at the shoe store where she worked. She details the incident in her book, We’re Going to Need More Wine. Authorities captured the rapist and he took a plea deal to serve 33 years in prison. Union won a negligence suit against Payless because the shoe store did not warn employees of her rapist’s history with the law.
Responses to Union’s tweet were mostly supportive of her view.
READ MORE: Bill Cosby Hurls Profanity at Prosecutor After Guilty Verdict
Sexual assault can lead to depression which derails the victim’s life. This can lead to dropping out of school or losing their job (esp. when it happens at school or work). The money can help in many ways. But idk one woman who wouldn’t trade it all for it not to have happened.
— SHAKE (@frieswdatSHAKE) April 28, 2018
“Sexual assault can lead to depression which derail’s a victim’s life,” tweeted @frieswdatSHAKE. “This can lead to dropping out of school or losing their job (esp. when it happens at school or work). The money can help in many ways. But idk one woman who wouldn’t trade it all for it not to have happened.”
Having beautiful strong women like @itsgabrielleu as role models is what empowers women everywhere to stand up against sexual assault. I am grateful to have an inspirational woman like she is in the public eye.
— Meg (@MeganHoffman16) April 27, 2018
Tweeted @MeganHoffman16, “Having beautiful strong women like @itsgabrielleu as role models is what empowers women everywhere to stand up against sexual assault. I am grateful to have an inspirational woman like she is in the public eye.”
The mental gymnastics people use to try to justify rape is insane. Cosby admittedly gave a woman quaaludes w/o her knowledge & had sex w her. He wasn’t buying NBC for $4B in 92′ & even if so, it was 04 when he raped her. The “taking a Black man down” mantra is exhausting
— KD (@Fly_Sistah) April 27, 2018
@Fly_Sistah tweeted, “The mental gymnastics people use to try to justify rape is insane. Cosby admittedly gave a woman Quaaludes w/o her knowledge & had sex w her. … The ‘taking a Black man down’ mantra is exhausting.”