Aziz Ansari accused of sexual misconduct, social media reacts

10:33 am on 15 January 2018

We have a response.

Aziz Ansari. Photo: Facebook

Comedian and writer Aziz Ansari has been accused of sexual misconduct by a woman he went on a date with shortly after last year’s Emmy Awards.

The woman’s anonymous account has been published on the website babe and involves allegations Ansari forced himself on her at his apartment. She described it as “the worst night of my life”.

Ansari is the 34-year-old co-creator of Netflix comedy Master of None and writer of research book Modern Romance: An Investigation. He has previously voiced his support of the #TimesUp movement and has publicly spoken positively about sexual consent.

The woman describes how she met Ansari at an Emmys after-party. They exchanged phone numbers and soon met for dinner, before he abruptly suggested they return to his apartment.

He quickly kissed and groped her and persisted in his attempts to have sex with her despite her both verbally and non-verbally indicating she was uncomfortable.

After performing oral sex on each other - “Everything was pretty much touched and done within ten minutes of hooking up, except for actual sex” - Ansari allegedly made further attempts to have sex, despite the woman continuing to indicate her uncomfortableness and distress.

Ansari is the latest in a long line of powerful men in Hollywood to be recently accused of sexual misconduct, the highest profile being producer Harvey Weinstein and actors Kevin Spacey and Dustin Hoffman.

The website has also shared a subsequent message exchange between the two:

23-year-old Grace* went on a date with Aziz Ansari in September. It turned out to be the worst night of her life. She told babe Ansari pulled her hand towards his penis multiple times and “kept doing it after I moved it away.” She said she remembers him asking again and again, “Where do you want me to fuck you?” Throughout the course of the night, she says she used verbal and non-verbal cues to indicate how unhappy she was. This is a conversation between them the following day where Grace tells Ansari how uncomfortable he made her feel, saying “you ignored clear non-verbal cues” and “kept going with advances.” Read the full story on babe.net.

A post shared by Babe (@babedotnet) on Jan 13, 2018 at 3:49pm PST

Ansari has now responded to the allegations:

Photo: Unknown

The story has led to an avalanche of reaction on social media:

sex should not be about seeing what you can get away with
— Dana Schwartz (@DanaSchwartzzz) January 14, 2018

"Common sense should be that everyone checks in with partners before, during, and after a romantic and sexual encounter." @lkherman https://t.co/JGA4zZP0SV
— Refinery29 (@Refinery29) January 14, 2018

What secure, mature dudes should be saying after reading the Aziz Ansari story: “I think it’s time to self-assess my own sexual history and attitudes and see where I’ve unknowingly failed and can become a better person.”

In actuality: “Do I need triplicate consent forms now?”
— Ashley Lynch™ (@ashleylynch) January 14, 2018

The thing about the Aziz Ansari allegations, whether they're accurate or not, is that so many of us can relate to a guy trying 50-leven times to convince you to have sex and because you don't explicitly say NO, he keeps trying, despite your discomfort.
— Britni Danielle (@BritniDWrites) January 14, 2018

The Aziz Ansari story was not surprising or even disappointing to me. It is not because I don't think he is a nice guy, it is because I think he is. The story captured the weird space some nice guys often occupy, somewhere in between harmless and alarmingly aggressive.
— TheGirlsLikeMe (@DoreenGLM) January 14, 2018

The thing about that Aziz Ansari story is almost every single woman has had that experience at least once in her dating life. #MeToo
— Cher (@thecherness) January 14, 2018

Aziz Ansari is probably a weeny and creep, but the real issue here is when will women learn they are independent agents?

They have got to take some responsibility.

Lady, you don't like what is happening? GET UP AND LEAVE.
— Jack Murphy (@jackmurphylive) January 14, 2018

Reading the article about Aziz Ansari initially made me roll my eyes, because I'm like, "Girl...we've all been there, why didn't you just leave?" But then I had to check myself because I've been there, and didn't always leave.
— Britni Danielle (@BritniDWrites) January 14, 2018

A lot of men will read that post about Aziz Ansari and see an everyday, reasonable sexual interaction. But part of what women are saying right now is that what the culture considers "normal" sexual encounters are not working for us, and oftentimes harmful.
— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) January 14, 2018

This Aziz Ansari story is proof that sexual assault is not just one type of way. The lines are blurry and begin the second we try to pull away and you persist. Persistence is not romantic as it is often portrayed in media - it is assault. It is assault. It is assault.
— Emily Jessee (@ee_jessee) January 14, 2018