Touré Show, May 2018

Touré Show, May 9, 2018
Lili Bernard: I Was Raped By Bill Cosby

Cosby sexually assaulted her three times but she’s rising like a phoenix now. This is one of the most powerful interviews I’ve ever had. I wanted to know what it was really like to be one of those inside the Cosby nightmare. This is that story. Let me know what you think. Twitter: @toure.

https://art19.com/shows/toure-show/episodes/40b68202-7402-4139-9d6e-26c3df4d033b

Lili Zion Age 10 web

Partial transcript from the interview:

Lili: I do believe that my speaking out publicly is one of the most important things I’ve ever could have done. Outside of giving birth to six children, I would say that it’s the 7th most important thing that I’ve done in my life — was to help convict this serial rapist — was to sit in that courtroom while six other women who were also similarly attacked by Bill Cosby, to sit in there and give them the support in my presence, while they were being slut shamed and victim blamed and had their characters assassinated by these real Machiavellian, shark-like defense attorneys of Bill Cosby – that I was there in that audience, as a public, looking at their eyes and letting them know I’m here, I believe them and that they’re OK. That’s the 7th most important thing I’ve done in my life, outside of giving birth to my 6 children. And speaking out, I’ve held Bill Cosby accountable through my public speaking, and I will continue to do so.

Touré: What were the further conversations that you had to have with your other 5 younger children? How old was your baby at that time when Rafael was 17?

Lili: Yeah. She was 6 — and when I first came public — and I did so through tremendous tears – you know – I’m much stronger than I was back then, three years ago. I went public more than 3 years ago. She was 6 years old and I mentioned, through tears and sobbing, that I did this because of her, – you know – to make her community a safer place — her future safer. And this guilty, guilty, guilty verdict which, of course, arose from the bravery of Andrea Constand and all the survivors who supported her, has made our communities safer places, because if someone as once revered and powerful as Bill Cosby can be convicted by a jury of his peers, then the average rapist is going to pause before raping a woman, before attacking a woman, ’cause they’re gonna think, “Wow, if Bill Cosby can be held accountable, maybe I will be too.” So it’s making our communities safer. And that’s part of what I feel I’m doing in speaking out is helping to make our communities safer, for rape victims, and not just women, but men too and children.

[Note: Touré mistated in the prelude, before the interview, that Cosby drugged and raped me three times. That is inaccurate. Touré corrected in the text to reflect what I state in the interview — that Cosby drugged me and sexually assaulted me three times. I was able to escape during the third drugging, which was more than a year after the first two incidents, without being raped, though I was sexually assaulted. It was not until the 3rd drugging that I had realized Cosby had drugged me the two prior times, during which he did rape me those two prior times. This remains one of my favorite interviews that I’ve conducted, regarding Bill Cosby. I’m grateful to Touré for having invited me on the show.]

Lili Touré