Lena Dunham Apologizes for Defending 'Girls' Writer from Sexual Assault Allegations

Lena Dunham is speaking out with an apology after she defended her friend, Girls writer Murray Miller, against sexual assault allegations made by actress Aurora Perrineau.

The actress and Girls creator was criticized for saying that “this accusation is one of the 3 percent of assault cases that are misreported every year.”

Lena tweeted out an apology statement on Saturday afternoon (November 18), but then deleted it soon after.

“As feminists, we live and die by our politics, and believing women is the first choice we make every single day when we wake up. Therefore I never thought I would issue a statement publically (sic) supporting someone accused of sexual assault, but I naively believed it was important to share my perspective on my friend’s situation as it has transpired behind the scenes over the last few months,” Lena wrote (via THR). “I now understand that it was absolutely the wrong time to come forward with such a statement and I am so sorry. We have been given the gift of powerful voices and by speaking out we were putting our thumb on the scale and it was wrong. We regret this decision with every fiber of our being.”

Click inside to read the rest of the statement…

“Every woman who comes forward deserves to be heard, fully and completely, and our relationship to the accused should not be part of the calculation anyone makes when examining her case,” she added. “Every person and every feminist should be required to hear her. Under patriarchy, ‘I believe you’ is essential. Until we are all believed, none of us will be believed. We apologize to any women who have been disappointed.”