*The following article contains discussion of sexual assault.
Comedian Kathy Griffin condemned celebrities like Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis for defending convicted sexual predator Danny Masterson.
Last week, Masterson was sentenced to 30 years in prison for raping two women at his Hollywood home over twenty years ago.
Kutcher and Kunis, who worked with Masterson on the TV sitcom That 70s Show, admitted to writing support letters for Masterson asking for leniency from the judge prior to sentencing.
They posted an apology video following backlash after the "character letters" were made public online.
In their letters to the judge, Kutcher praised Masterson as a "good friend" and "role model" while Kunis described him as "an outstanding older brother figure" to her.
Griffin slammed the actors, among others like Giovanni Ribisi, who wrote similar letters defending Masterson, despite the positive impression he had on peers.
To reinforce her point that even an upstanding citizen is still capable of harming people, the stand-up comic and author opened up about a deeply personal and painful story about her late brother, who was allegedly a sexual predator.
“My brother, who’s now dead―his name was Ken Griffin―was a pedophile,” said Griffin in a TikTok video.
The clip was captioned with:
"Trigger warning. This has haunted me my whole life."
"I tried everything I could think of. No one would do anything."
You can watch the TikTok video here.
Griffin continued:
“It was a horrible, horrible thing, and I tried to get him caught."
"Now, this was my brother, so I don’t want to hear about Ashton and Mila and Giovanni Ribisi, and people that feel like they had to stick up for Danny Masterson because he was their ‘bro,’ he was their ‘buddy.’"
"This was my own brother.”
She mentioned how she was ostracized by her family because of her attempt to get her brother Ken arrested.
Although she informed the LAPD twice about her brother, Griffin recalled officers telling her there was nothing they could do unless he turned himself in "or if one of the kids confesses and goes to authorities, ”which is not a statistically common occurrence.
"I said: ‘You think a 10-year-old is going to walk into the precinct on Bronson or whatever, and ask for help?' "
"It doesn’t work that way in this crime."
"It's always haunted me that I could never do anything about it," she said, adding:
"And I think about those children every day.”
She also said of her family:
“Sometimes they would write me letters saying I’m not a Griffin anymore, and all this nonsense."
"The point is, blood was not thicker than water."
“And if you know that somebody is committing [sexual assault], you should do something if you can."
“My God, at least try.”
People were moved by Griffin's video and they praised her for her courage in opening up.
@kathygriffin/TikTok
@kathygriffin/TikTok
@kathygriffin/TikTok
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@kathygriffin/TikTok
Victims were inspired to come forward and contribute to the critical discussion.
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@kathygriffin/TikTok
@kathygriffin/TikTok
@kathygriffin/TikTok
Actor Christina Ricci also spoke out against celebrities defending Masterson by reminding the public that even people known as "'awesome guys" can be predators and abusers.
On her Instagram story, the Yellowjackets star wrote, in part:
"It’s tough to accept but we have to. If we say we support victims — women, children, men, boys — then we must be able to take this stance.”
See something? Say something. It can save lives.
If you or someone you know experienced sexual assault, help is out there.
You can reach the RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline by calling 1-800-656-4673, use their Live Chat tool: https://www.rainn.org/get-help, or visit the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
In Canada, help is available through the Ending Violence Association of Canada website.
International resources can be found through the Rape Crisis Network Europe website.
