Beverly Johnson Reveals Impact of Speaking Out Against Bill Cosby, 'I Knew it Was an Important Thing to Do'
Beverly Johnson has revealed how her life has changed after coming forth last month to accuse Bill Cosby of attempting to drug her.
Cosby, the 77-year-old comedian who became popular in the 1980s and 1990s and starred on the hit family sitcom "The Cosby Show," has recently been the subject of media scrutiny due to the rising number of allegations brought against him. Lately, a number of women have come forth, alleging that Cosby sexually assaulted them years ago.
After Johnson, the first black model to grace the cover of American Vogue, told her story about how Cosby allegedly attempted to drug her in the mid 1980s, she spoke about inspiring women to tell their own stories of abuse.
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"I knew what to expect by coming here, and I was good with it—until I got here. My whole life changed in the last month," Johnson told The Hollywood Reporter. "There has been an outpouring of women telling me their sexual abuse stories. I knew it was an important thing to do."
Johnson insisted she made the right choice to speak out against Cosby.
"Now I hear these stories wherever I go," she said. "I know, though, that speaking out was the right thing to do—it is always the right thing to do."
In a personal essay written for Vanity Fair, the 62-year-old began her account by admitting that she once thought of Cosby as elegant after being in awe of him since the 1960s. Johnson said she met Cosby when she auditioned for a small role on his popular sitcom "The Cosby Show."
Since she was going through a bitter custody battle for her only child with her ex-husband, Johnson said Cosby seemed interested in helping her. After offering her an Espresso coffee from his home machine, the model was hesitant to take it but eventually obliged. Johnson alleges that she realized Cosby had drugged her drink, causing her to curse at him.
While Johnson said the comedian violently placed her in a cab, she attempted to confront him via telephone following the ordeal. When his wife answered the telephone, the model decided to drop the matter and doubted that she should publicly accuse such a powerful man.
However, she explained her reasons for coming forward now, years after the ordeal.
"For a long time I thought it was something that only happened to me, and that I was somehow responsible. So I kept my secret to myself, believing this truth needed to remain in the darkness," Johnson wrote. "But the last four weeks have changed everything, as so many women have shared similar stories, of which the press have belatedly taken heed."
Although he has denied the claims, the comedian previously announced that he would step down from being on Temple University's Board of Trustees in light of all of the negative media attention he is receiving.
"I have always been proud of my association with Temple University. I have always wanted to do what would be in the best interests of the university and its students," Cosby said in a statement, according to the Associated Press. "As a result, I have tendered my resignation from the Temple University Board of Trustees."
