Serena Williams made some seriously awful comments about the victim in the Steubenville rape case in a Rolling Stone profile. Now she’s apologizing… sorta.
Tennis pro Serena Williams came down with a disgusting case of foot-in-mouth disease recently when she made some offhanded comments on the Steubenville rape case in a Rolling Stone profile.
In the piece, Stephen Rodrick writes that Williams just shook her head when a news piece about the rape case flashed on television.
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“Do you think it was fair, what they got? They did something stupid, but I don’t know. I’m not blaming the girl, but if you’re a 16-year-old and you’re drunk like that, your parents should teach you: don’t take drinks from other people,” Williams said. “She’s 16, why was she that drunk where she doesn’t remember? It could have been much worse. She’s lucky. Obviously I don’t know, maybe she wasn’t a virgin, but she shouldn’t have put herself in that position, unless they slipped her something, then that’s different.”
Basically, the athlete — who helped blaze trails for African American women in tennis — blames the victim for the rape. Also, we’re not sure what the teen’s virginity has to do with anything, either.
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Now, she’s trying to distance herself from it — even alluding that Rodrick made it up.
“I am currently reaching out to the girl’s family to let her know that I am deeply sorry for what was written in the Rolling Stone article,” Williams told Good Morning America on Wednesday. “What was written — what I supposedly said — is insensitive and hurtful, and I by no means would say or insinuate that she was at all to blame.”
“What happened in Steubenville was a real shock for me. I was deeply saddened. For someone to be raped, and at only 16, is such a horrible tragedy. For both families involved — that of the rape victim and of the accused,” Williams continued.
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“I have fought all of my career for women’s equality, women’s equal rights, respect in their fields — anything I could do to support women I have done,” she added. “My prayers and support always goes out to the rape victim. In this case, most especially, to an innocent 16-year-old child.”
We all make (really) stupid comments sometimes, but is this forgivable? Sound off below.
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