Russell Simmons appeared on The Breakfast Club yesterday (June 10th) to discuss On The Record, the documentary that features some of the women who accused him of sexual assault. During the interview, Simmons consistently denied the allegations, saying, “I’m guilty of having underwritten, supported, made soundtracks for, taken advantage of and lived in a grossly unjust society…I made the movie How to Be A Player. Bill Bellamy played me. So I know what I’m guilty of. I’ve been unconscious as a playboy. So today, the title is appropriate. Womanizer. I’m guilty of that. And back then, I thought it was a game…There were no Black actresses that I didn’t date. But they’re my friends today. I went out every night and looked for new girls to date. These are my friends today and they don’t have the experience that the movie makes me to be."
He continued, "I could never say that someone doesn’t feel victimized. These stories are 20-30 years old. I can say that I don’t feel that I victimized them. How can I say that? I took three 9-hour lie detector tests.”
After the interview aired, one of Simmons' accusers Sil Lai Abrams took to Twitter to criticize The Breakfast club for giving Simmons a platform. Abrams, who accused Simmons of rape in 1994, said, “Why do you carry water for this man? Why now? Why are you so tone deaf? You’re all complicit in ensuring that black women’s right to bodily autonomy continues to be denied. You’re also rape apologists.”
She continued, “The biggest radio show in the black community just gave a huge middle finger to black women and survivors of sexual assault. Stunts like what @breakfastclubam is pulling this morning by having Russell Simmons on to talk about *social justice of all things* is why it took over 25 years for R. Kelly to start to be held accountable for his serial predation of Black women and girls.”