Wendy Williams, 53, has a message for the anonymous woman who accused Aziz Ansari, 34, of sexual misconduct. The woman — a 23-year-old Brooklyn-based photographer under the alias “Grace” — came forward on January 14 with allegations that she had an “uncomfortable” sexual encounter with the comedian. However, the woman’s allegations turned out to be a bit of a miscommunication between her and Ansari, as opposed to him acting inappropriately. The woman and Ansari both engaged in sexual acts, with the woman airing her grievances after the fact, to which Ansari replied that he had no idea she felt that way. He was under the impression both he and the woman enjoyed their night together. So, Wendy had a few questions for the woman during her January 16 show — “Then why didn’t you just bite it and leave?… “Why didn’t you just grab your coat and leave, dummy?” the talk show host proclaimed.
In the end, Wendy revealed that she is on Ansari’s side, after she slammed the anonymous accuser. “Girl, this was not the MeToo movement; This is what you call a bad date,” Wendy said. “Now, everybody’s after her. I don’t even like her and I don’t even know her…I’m with Aziz, for now!” Wendy went on to give her opinion about the MeToo movement, carefully watching what she said in fear of being criticized. “Here’s the thing about the MeToo… Let me tell you something right now, ladies, I don’t believe all of the ladies talking about this MeToo thing,” she said. “There’s a lot of liars out there just wanting to be down with the program.”
Wendy then referenced HLN host, Ashleigh Banfield, 50, who used a portion of her segment on Crime & Justice [January 15] to call out the anonymous woman who accused Ansari of sexual misconduct. In part of her powerful 4:25 open letter, Banfield slammed the accuser for her “bad date,” calling the accuser’s allegations “reckless and hollow.”
Banfield said in part: “You’re 23. What a gift. Yet you look that gift horse in the mouth and chiseled away at that powerful movement with your public accusation. You had an unpleasant date. And you did not leave. That is on you. And all the gains that have been achieved on your behalf and mine are now being compromised by the allegations that you threw out there, and I’m gonna call them reckless and hollow.” Wendy praised Banfield’s words saying, “Sing it, sister!”
Ansari has since released the following statement:
“In September of last year, I met a woman at a party. We exchanged numbers. We texted back and forth and eventually went on a date. We went out to dinner, and afterwards we ended up engaging in sexual activity, which by all indications was completely consensual.”
“The next day, I got a text from her saying that although it may have seemed okay, upon further reflection, she felt uncomfortable. It was true that everything did seem okay to me, so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned. I took her words to heart and responded privately after taking the time to process what she had said.”
“I continue to support the movement that is happening in our culture. It is necessary and long overdue.”
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