Kristina Cohen is a 27-year-old Los Angeles actress who has published sexual assault allegations against Ed Westwick, who starred as Chuck Bass in the hit TV series, Gossip Girl. Cohen was inspired to tell what she says Ed did to her when he held her down and raped her three years ago. Kristina claimed that the recent spate of women and men sharing their own alleged sexual assault stories had been a trigger for her and sharing her own experience has emotionally exhausted the actress.
On the Facebook page named Kristina Cohen , the post published on Monday, November 6 , has gained nearly 5,000 Facebook reactions. Kristina wrote that the previous month has been incredibly difficult, since she, too, has a story of sexual assault. Unsure if she should speak out and not clear over whether or not she would be heard, Kristina went ahead and told her story on Facebook.
“I was sexually assaulted three years ago. It was a dark time in my life. My mom was dying of cancer and I didn’t have the support system or time to process and deal with the aftermath of the rape. I buried my pain and guilt to make space for the onslaught that came after my mom’s death, just three months later.”
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Describing grappling with feelings of guilt, Cohen went on to write about societal conditioning that tells women everything is their fault. That’s when Kristina went on to name names, including Westwick’s name.
“I was briefly dating a producer who was friends with the actor Ed Westwick. It was this producer who brought me up to Ed’s house where I met Ed for the first time. I wanted to leave when Ed suggested ‘we should all f***.’ But the producer didn’t want to make Ed feel awkward by leaving. Ed insisted we stay for dinner. I said I was tired and wanted to leave, trying to get out of what was already an uncomfortable situation. Ed suggested I nap in the guest bedroom. The producer said we would stay for just another 20 more minutes to smooth everything over, and then we could leave.”
Kristina went on to write about what she called a “nightmare,” with Cohen alleging that she fell asleep, only to be awakened allegedly by Ed, who was on top of the actress and reportedly placing his fingers inside of Cohen. Kristina wrote that she tried to fight back, but that Ed allegedly overpowered her and sexually assaulted the actress.
“So I went and laid down in the guest room where I eventually fell asleep, I was woken up abruptly by Ed on top of me, his fingers entering my body. I told him to stop, but he was strong. I fought him off as hard as I could but he grabbed my face in his hands, shaking me, telling me he wanted to f*** me. I was paralyzed, terrified. I couldn’t speak, I could no longer move. He held me down and raped me.”
To add insult to alleged injury, Kristina wrote that the producer blamed Cohen and called her “an active participant” who couldn’t say anything, or else Ed and his people would destroy the budding actress, along with any hopes for an acting career.
Cohen went on to write that it “sickened” her to see guys like Westwick given public respect and high-brow honors that cite Ed as a leader that shapes the world. Instead, Kristina wrote that she hopes that by coming forward, it will help other victims know that they are not alone and they are not at fault.
Blake Lively can be seen in the above photo with her co-star Westwick, when they attended the New York premiere of Rocket Science on August 7, 2007, in New York City. Meanwhile, with Kristina’s Facebook post going viral, it’s not yet clear what Ed’s response to the rape claims will be. As seen in the reply section of his Twitter page’s latest post below, there is a heated debate over the rape claims.
Update: Westwick has denied the rape claims and wrote that he doesn’t know Cohen.
[Featured Image by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images]