United against rape: 35 alleged victims of Bill Cosby tell their stories

Thirty-five alleged victims of TV comedian Bill Cosby have told their stories and been photographed for New York magazine. The monochrome cover picture features women aged from their 20s to 80 and includes supermodels Beverley Johnson and Janice Dickinson, waitresses and journalists. One of the alleged victims, Barbara Bowman, told the publication: “I felt like a prisoner; I felt like I was kidnapped and hiding in plain sight. I could have walked down any street in Manhattan at any time and said: ‘I’m being raped and drugged by Bill Cosby,’ but who the hell would have believed me? Nobody, nobody.”

The part of it I wasn’t prepared for was the onslaught of women that had been assaulted and them telling me their story because I told mine

Beverley Johnson

Cosby, now 78, has been accused of drugging and assaulting women in a series of allegations dating back to the 1960s. He denies any wrongdoing and has not been charged. In recently released court papers, he has admitted offering pills and payments to women he had sexual encounters with. he magazine states, The magazine described its piece as a “longitudinal study” of how a woman dealt with the trauma of sexual assault. It added: “In the ’60s, when the first alleged assault by Cosby occurred, rape was considered to be something violent committed by a stranger. But among younger women, and particularly online, there is a strong sense now that speaking up is the only thing to do, that a woman claiming her own victimhood is more powerful than any other weapon in the fight against rape.”

He raped me. I wouldn’t call him crazy… I felt that he was very much in control of his behaviour.

Actress Lili Bernard

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