Florence Pugh recently appeared on The View to promote Netflix's limited series "East of Eden," speaking on television for the first time about the Cornell University sexual assault allegations and Instagram's decision to place a sensitive-content warning on her earlier post about the case.
Co-host Sara Haines noted that Pugh's "East of Eden" character, Cathy Ames, is sexually assaulted as a young woman, then connected the storyline to the real-life case and asked why the actress felt compelled to speak out: "Even today, women are still forced to bear the consequences of sexual violence, as we've seen with the allegations surrounding the so-called 'Cornell 7.' The case is ongoing, and some of the accused have denied any wrongdoing. I read what you wrote, and this clearly matters deeply to you. Why did you feel you had to speak out?"
"Rape is something that will always exist, and the fear of it lives in our bodies," Pugh replied. "When something like this comes to light but doesn't receive the attention you hope it will, it frightens me. It makes me anxious, and it makes me incredibly angry. I'm very fortunate to do the work I do and to have a platform, so I wanted to talk about it."
Addressing Instagram's restrictions on her post, Pugh added: "I'm able to sit here today and talk about it in person, but what's upsetting is that when I said these things on Instagram, I was censored. That's another shocking part of this—women go through these experiences, and then they're censored and aren't even allowed to talk about them."
"This is an ongoing conversation, and it will remain one until we truly start taking a much tougher stance against the people who harm women."
Pugh previously urged men on Instagram to be "as horrified and sickened as us," but the post was later flagged with a sensitive-content warning. The case centers on an anonymous woman's lawsuit alleging that seven Cornell fraternity members sexually assaulted her in 2024. Some of the accused have denied wrongdoing, and the civil litigation remains ongoing.
via： EW