Over 40 women have leveled accusations of sexual assault or sexual harassment against Harvey Weinstein in recent weeks, with the producer and ousted studio executive largely remaining silent. In light of Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o penning a revelatory New York Times op-ed Thursday, Weinstein’s camp has issued what may be the only direct response to one of his accusers.
“Mr. Weinstein has a different recollection of the events, but believes Lupita is a brilliant actress and a major force for the industry,” a statement released by a spokesperson for Weinstein read, in part. “Last year, she sent a personal invitation to Mr. Weinstein to see her in her Broadway show ‘Eclipsed’.”
You don’t exactly have to be an ethnographer to see a difference between Nyong’o and the dozens of other women whose accusations against Weinstein are eerily similar. Twitter users who caught wind of Weinstein’s statement were quick to point out how he individually singled out one of the few (if only) prominent celebrities of color to level such accusations at him since the Times blew the lid off of decades of allegations of predatory behavior.
On Weinstein, why is Lupita Nyong'o the only one being singled out?? Read her opinion piece and the details fall in line with others.
— John-Allan Namu (@johnallannamu) October 21, 2017
14 white women and Lupita Nyong'o speak out against Harvey Weinstein's sexual assaults.
— Millennial Politics (@MillenPolitics) October 21, 2017
Weinstein only rebukes Nyong'o.
Wonder why? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/k0DnMNOEIo
aka “I raped all those other women but not that nig... black one.” https://t.co/IbyPCtHLLt
— Marcel Williams (@WHUTUPDOE) October 21, 2017
"Why did #LupitaNyongo wait so long before reporting #Weinstein?"
— Tom Barron (@Tomifonication) October 20, 2017
Um, maybe because this happens and you critcize the fuck out of her?
If you needed further confirmation that Weinstein is a trash human being, note the timing of his statement. The now-disgraced studio head was reportedly in a rehabilitation facility in Arizona to “deal with this issue head on.” Yet somehow, as someone from Weinstein’s inner circle is allegedly leaking stories to TMZ about the amazing progress he’s making in learning that it is wrong to force yourself on women against their will, he managed to single out one of his alleged victims.
![Harvey Weinstein speaks onstage at The Weinstein Company's Pre Oscar Dinner](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 203 115"%3E%3C/svg%3E)