Hollywood has been dealing with a number of sexual harassment and assault scandals over the last few months, which has led to many people being asked their opinion on the matter. This week, Angela Lansbury found herself dealing with heavy criticism after comments she made about sexual harassment during an interview with Radio Times . Not only did the actress have to deal with backlash across social media but also from the news media as well.
In the interview, Angela Lansbury was said to have claimed that for women “making themselves attractive” has ended up backfiring on them. The actress, who is known for her role in Murder, She Wrote , also said that she feels as if women must “sometimes take blame” for what happens to them. However, during that same interview, Angela Lansbury also said that she does not believe women should have to be prepared to be assaulted or harassed, and there is no excuse for it happening.
According to BBC News , Lansbury is now responding to the backlash over her earlier comments in a statement that not only clarifies her stance on sexual harassment but also addresses the backlash itself. In a new statement from the actress, she says that she is actually devastated that anyone would think that she was not against men harassing women in a sexually abusive manner. Angela Lansbury said that anyone who knows her or has ever seen her work, or even seen the statements she has made over the course of her career, “must know, that I am a strong supporter of women’s rights.”
a woman who dresses nicely isn’t “asking for trouble” any more than a lion with beautiful fur is “asking to get shot” https://t.co/hawfXiZBBs
— Gretchen Carlson (@GretchenCarlson) November 28, 2017
After Lansbury addressed her thoughts on sexual harassment in this new statement, the actress went on to say that she was “troubled by how quickly and brutishly some have taken my comments out of context and attempted to blame my generation, my age, or my mindset, without having read the entirety of what I said.” While Angela Lansbury may have said in her last interview that she believes that it is awful to think that women are unable to make themselves look as attractive as they want to for fear of being harassed sexually, it seems that her statement may have been misinterpreted.
Although Angela Lansbury has come under fire for her recent comments about women and sexual harassment, the actress hopes that her latest statement will clarify her thoughts on the situation and make it clear that she does not believe women are to blame for being harassed or assaulted.