It was, especially for me, a neutral statement that acknowledged the complexities of Bryant’s death, his remarkable career, and the very real grief his family and fans were about to endure.
#ROXANE GAY HUNGER PASSAGE ON MINDSET PROFESSIONAL#
And he had a spectacular professional career.” On Twitter, I said, “There are going to be a lot of complicated reactions to Kobe Bryant’s death but I feel all the sympathy in the world for Vanessa Bryant and their four daughters. I was also thinking about other victims of sexual assault who were about to experience a public discussion about Bryant that would likely try to erase something that cannot be erased. We can never know how sincere Bryant was in this apology and whether it was orchestrated but it happened, publicly.
After months of reviewing discovery, listening to her attorney, and even her testimony in person, I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter.”
“I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did. “Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual,” he said. In a statement after the settlement, Bryant apologized and came about as close as any public figure ever has to acknowledging the harm he caused. Then I thought about the 19-year-old woman Bryant allegedly raped in 2003, a woman who was outed, silenced, and eventually settled with Bryant out of court. The magnitude of their grief felt unfathomable, and I have to believe that grieving in the public eye only amplified the tragedy. My first thought was for his wife, Vanessa, and their daughters. Though I am not an avid basketball fan, I understood his immense talent and cultural power. When I first heard the news about Kobe Bryant’s death, I was in disbelief.