Lena Dunham apologizes to sex abuse victims after furor over book
Lena Dunham, the American actor, author and creator of the hit HBO series Girls, has formally addressed accusations she molested her little sister and threatened to sue the conservative blog at the centre of the claims.
"First and foremost, I want to be very clear that I do not condone any kind of abuse under any circumstances," she said in a statement to Time magazine Tuesday.
"Childhood sexual abuse is a life-shattering event for so many, and I have been vocal about the rights of survivors," she continued. "If the situations described in my book have been painful or triggering for people to read, I am sorry, as that was never my intention."
"As for my sibling, Grace," she added, "she is my best friend, and anything I have written about her has been published with her approval."
The accusations, posted last week on the conservative American blog Truth Revolt, centre on passages from Dunham’s new memoir, Not That Kind of Girl, in which Dunham vividly described her relationship with her younger sibling.
Among other things, the blog alleged that Dunham "experimented with her six-year younger sister’s vagina" and "use[d] her little sister at times essentially as a sexual outlet".
Grace appeared to denounce the allegations Tuesday on Twitter, writing: "As a queer person: I'm committed to people narrating their own experiences, determining for themselves what has and has not been harmful."
Dunham threatens lawsuit
Dunham’s attorneys, meantime, have reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to Truth Revolt in which they threaten to sue unless the website withdraws its story and issues a formal apology.
In the letter, obtained by Mashable, Dunham’s lawyers insist that the allegations are "completely false and fabricated, and highly defamatory."
"Remedies," her attorneys warn, "include, without limitation, actual damages to her personal and professional reputation which likely would be calculated in the millions of dollars."
Truth Revolt's editor-in-chief, Ben Shapiro, responded to the letter with an article in which he "refuse[d] to withdraw our story or apologize for running it, because quoting a woman’s book does not constitute a 'false' story.
"Lena Dunham may not like our interpretation of her book," the article reads. "But unfortunately for her and her attorneys, she wrote that book – and the First Amendment covers a good deal of material she may not like."
Book tour on hold
The best-selling author was on an international book tour when the backlash over Not That Kind of Girl began. Her publisher, Random House, cited illness Tuesday when it announced that two appearances in Europe would be postponed until early December.
Earlier this year, Dunham supported Dylan Farrow's decision to write an open letter detailing allegations that her father, Woody Allen, had sexually abused her. The letter was published in The New York Times.
"To share in this way is courageous, powerful and generous," Dunham tweeted at the time, adding a link to Dylan Farrow's letter.
