Padma Lakshmi opens up about decision to speak about her rape
Padma Lakshmi said even though she decided to open up about being raped as a teenager, so many other sexual assault victims stay quiet about their trauma because they fear being forever defined by the experience.
"I have a show that's Emmy nominated. I have a child. I have a foundation for women's reproductive health. I'm with the ACLU and I speak on their behalf for immigration — I don't want to be known as that girl from that cooking show who was raped," Lakshmi said in an exclusive interview with TODAY Monday.
"I think women feel that way. They feel like they have this invisible scarlet letter that this happened to them."
The "Top Chef" host in September described in a New York Times op-ed how at 16 she was raped while she slept by her 23-year-old boyfriend. The piece ran after sexual assault allegations were raised during the Supreme Court confirmation hearing for Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of assaulting university professor Christine Blasey Ford when they were both teens.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/celebrity/padma-lakshmi-opens-up-about-decision-to-speak-about-her-rape/ar-BBQ7cCi?li=BBnb7Kz