Russell Simmons steps down from companies amid new allegation
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Def Jam Records founder Russell Simmons says he is stepping away from his companies following a second allegation of sexual misconduct.
In an essay published by The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday, screenwriter and actor Jenny Lumet described a “circa 1991” incident in which she says Simmons offered her a ride home following a social gathering, but instead took her to his New York apartment against her will and had sex with her.
“I felt dread and disorientation. I wanted to go home. I said I wanted to go home. I didn’t recognize the man next to me. I didn’t know if the situation would turn violent. I remember thinking that I must be crazy; I remember hoping that the Russell I knew would return any moment,” Lumet wrote in her essay.
Screenwriter Jenny Lumet, seen at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival, said she was prompted to speak out by Simmons’ recent denial of a separate 1991 allegation made by another woman. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival)
“As a woman of colour, I cannot express how wrenching it is to write this about a successful man of colour… In this very moment, I feel a pang to protect your daughters. I don’t think you are inclined to protect mine.”
Lumet — the award-winning screenwriter of Rachel Getting Married, daughter of filmmaker Sidney Lumet and granddaughter of singer Lena Horne — says she was prompted to speak out by Simmons’ denial earlier this month of a separate 1991 allegation of misconduct by another woman.
Simmons says in a statement released after the essay that although Lumet’s memory of the night is “very different” from his, it’s clear to him “that her feelings of fear and intimidation are real.”
He apologized for being “thoughtless and insensitive” in some of his relationships.
Russel Simmons’ full statement:
“I have been informed with great anguish of Jenny Lumet’s recollection about our night together in 1991. I know Jenny and her family and have seen her several times over the years since the evening she described. While her memory of that evening is very different from mine, it is now clear to me that her feelings of fear and intimidation are real. While I have never been violent, I have been thoughtless and insensitive in some of my relationships over many decades and I sincerely and humbly apologize.
“This is a time of great transition. The voices of the voiceless, those who have been hurt or shamed, deserve and need to be heard. As the corridors of power inevitably make way for a new generation, I don’t want to be a distraction so I am removing myself from the businesses that I founded. The companies will now be run by a new and diverse generation of extraordinary executives who are moving the culture and consciousness forward. I will convert the studio for yogic science into a not-for-profit centre of learning and healing. As for me, I will step aside and commit myself to continuing my personal growth, spiritual learning and above all to listening.”
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