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Common recently shocked many people after he revealed to the world that he had been molested as a child in a new memoir.
Many wondered why he would open up about such a sensitive subject, especially since he had been on the public scene for almost 30 years.
The Chicago rapper/actor addressed those comments with a few tweets discussing his decision to come out with that bombshell.
“I talked about being molested because, as a Black man, many men have hidden that,” he wrote. “Many people have hidden that. And you carry that weight with you. But at some point, you’ve got to let it go. “
“I hope being open about my childhood trauma can give others the strength to do the same and help them on their healing journeys. We all have experienced pain and suffering. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
I talked about being molested because, as a Black man, many men have hidden that. Many people have hidden that. And you carry that weight with you. But at some point, you’ve got to let it go. https://t.co/DRvuPBcJIp
— COMMON (@common) May 8, 2019
I hope being open about my childhood trauma can give others the strength to do the same and help them on their healing journeys. We all have experienced pain and suffering. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.
— COMMON (@common) May 8, 2019
Common detailed his experience in a new book in which he recalled the night it happened.
“I was excited for a road trip I was about to take with my family,” he wrote. “My mother; my godmother, Barbara; her son and my godbrother Skeet; and his relative, who I’ll call Brandon… [whom he was made to share a bed with].
“At some point I felt Brandon’s hand on me,” he writes. “I pushed him away. I don’t remember saying a whole lot besides ‘No, no, no.’ He kept saying ‘It’s okay, It’s okay,’ as he pulled down my shorts and molested me. After he stopped he kept asking me to perform it on him. I kept repeating ‘No’ and pushing him away. I felt a deep and sudden shame for what happened.”
Let Love Have the Last Word is available now.