Lena Dunham finally apologizes to sexual assault victim who accused a Girls producer of rape

Lena Dunham has finally apologized to the alleged sexual assault victim who accused a Girls TV show producer of raping her when she was just 17. 

Dunham, 32, made headlines when Aurora Perrineau, 24, came forward with the rape allegations from 2012 about producer Murray Miller, and instead of supporting the victim she released a joint statement with her co-show runner Jenni Konner defending Miller. 

One year later, the TV writer is apologizing to Perrineau in her guest editor’s letter in the upcoming Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment issue, saying ‘I made a terrible mistake’.

‘When someone I knew, someone I had loved as a brother, was accused, I did something inexcusable: I publicly spoke up in his defense. There are few acts I could ever regret more in this life,’ she said. 

Actress Aurora Perrineau, 24, accused Girls producer Murray Miller of raping her in 2012 when she was 17 years old

Lena Dunham, 32, (left) has issued a public apology to actress Aurora Perrineau, 24, (right) who accused Girls producer Murray Miller of rape in November 2017, which Dunham initially slammed as a misreported assault cause 

Murray Miller (above) vehemently denies the allegations made last year. Dunham said she initially didn't believe Perrineau because she accused 'someone I had loved as a brother'

Murray Miller (above) vehemently denies the allegations made last year. Dunham said she initially didn’t believe Perrineau because she accused ‘someone I had loved as a brother’

‘I didn’t have the “insider information” I claimed but rather blind faith in a story that kept slipping and changing and revealed itself to mean nothing at all. I wanted to feel my workplace and my world were safe, untouched by the outside world (a privilege in and of itself, the privilege of ignoring what hasn’t hurt you) and I claimed that safety at cost to someone else, someone very special,’ she added. 

Then she wrote to Perrineau directly writing: ‘I believe you, Aurora.’

‘To Aurora: You have been on my mind and in my heart every day this year. I love you. I will always love you. I will always work to right that wrong. In that way, you have made me a better woman and a better feminist,’ she said. 

Dunham said she thought she was self-aware in the sexual assault allegations and now realized she had ‘actually internalized the dominant male agenda’.   

‘My job now is to excavate that part of myself to create a new cavern inside me where a candle stays lit, and illuminates the wall behind it where these words are written: “I see you, Aurora. I hear you, Aurora. I believe you, Aurora,”‘ she wrote.

She then praised the actress for her bravery in defending her side of the story.  

‘Aurora — your bravery, openness, forgiveness, dignity and grace in the face of legal proceedings and endless questioning and in the face of my statement has been astounding,’ Dunham wrote.  

Dunham penned the public apology to Aurora in the upcoming Hollywood Reporter Women in Entertainment issue which she is guest editing 

Dunham penned the public apology to Aurora in the upcoming Hollywood Reporter Women in Entertainment issue which she is guest editing 

In the letter Dunham writes 'I see you, Aurora. I hear you, Aurora. I believe you, Aurora' and praises her seeking justice

In the letter Dunham writes ‘I see you, Aurora. I hear you, Aurora. I believe you, Aurora’ and praises her seeking justice

Miller has denied the rape allegations. In August 2018 the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office declined to file charges against him 

Miller has denied the rape allegations. In August 2018 the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file charges against him 

‘You’ve been a model of stoicism, all the while reminding other women that their assault experiences are theirs to process as they wish (with noise, with silence, with rage — it’s all OK). You have generously allowed me to speak about your many virtues here and tell these readers that you are moving on as a woman and as an artist. You have inspired me to do the same, and I know I’m not alone,’ Dunham added.

Dunham closed the letter saying: ‘Sometimes healing starts with the words: I’m sorry. I’m sorry.’ 

In the letter she also apologized to Perrineau’s mother who will attend the Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment event, according to Page Six.  

Perrineau accused Miller, 42, of sexually assaulting her in November 2017. 

‘I woke up in Murray’s bed naked. He was on top of me having sexual intercourse with me. At no time did I consent to any sexual contact with Murray,’ she said in a statement taken for a polygraph test.

Dunham and Konner then released a statement opposing her account saying they had ‘insider knowledge that this accusation is one of the three per cent of assault cases that are misreported every year. It is a true shame to add to that number, as outside of Hollywood women still struggle to be believed. ‘

Miller has denied the rape allegations and accused Perrineau and her legal team of demanding money from him and his attorneys, then later redacted that claim. 

In August 2018 the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file charges against him. 

The Women in Entertainment issue will go on stands on Wednesday.  

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk