Supermodel Beverly Johnson is the latest alleged victim to speak out against Bill Cosby. In a thoughtful and heartfelt essay for Vanity Fair, she describes an afternoon sometimes in the mid-80s when Cosby drugged her at his home and the events that followed.
Johnson, 62, claims that on that day Cosby insisted she try a cappuccino and that there were drugs in the drink. As a top model in the 70s she recalls having had her share of drug encounters, and insists she could tell that something was wrong by the second sip.
Johnson writes:
It’s nuts, I know, but it felt oddly inappropriate arguing with Bill Cosby so I took a few sips of the coffee just to appease him. Now let me explain this: I was a top model during the 70s, a period when drugs flowed at parties and photo shoots like bottled water at a health spa. I’d had my fun and experimented with my fair share of mood enhancers. I knew by the second sip of the drink Cosby had given me that I’d been drugged—and drugged good. My head became woozy, my speech became slurred, and the room began to spin nonstop. Cosby motioned for me to come over to him as though we were really about to act out the scene. He put his hands around my waist, and I managed to put my hand on his shoulder in order to steady myself. As I felt my body go completely limp, my brain switched into automatic-survival mode. That meant making sure Cosby understood that I knew exactly what was happening at that very moment.
Cosby’s lawyers did not comment on Johnson’s account when the magazine reached out. Johnson also goes on to acknowledge that she was hesitant to speak up or confront Cosby publicly because she feared ruining a Black man’s reputation who was a trailblazer for our community. Do you agree with her concerns?
Read the rest of Johnson’s essay, which details why she visited Cosby’s home that afternoon and what happened afterward, on VanityFair.com.