Backlash After Disney Heiress Says Kobe Bryant ‘Was a Rapist’

PARK CITY, UT - JANUARY 22: Abigail Disney speaks onstage at The Sundance Institute, Refin
Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for Refinery29
Warner Todd Huston

Abigail Disney, the granddaughter of Walt Disney Company co-founder Roy O. Disney, is under fire after saying NBA great Kobe Bryant was a rapist as his fans struggle to deal with his tragic death.

Abigail Disney, documentary filmmaker and Disney heiress, took to Twitter on Wednesday to tell Bryant’s fans that their hero was a rapist and they will just have to “deal with it.”

Disney went on the attack saying, “haven’t said anything about Kobe so far because I felt some time needed to pass before weighing in. But yes, it’s time for the sledgehammer to come out. The man was a rapist. Deal with it. ”

Disney’s outburst was in reply to David Von Drehle’s Washington Post op-ed penned in support of fellow reporter Felicia Sonmez, who was handed a suspension after she posted a tweet mentioning the 2003 rape accusations that had been lodged against the former L.A. Lakers star.

In his Tuesday op-ed, Von Drehle insisted that a full assessment of Bryant’s life demands a sober discussion of the bad right along with the good things that he did during his life. Disney clearly came down on Von Drehle’s side of the discussion.

But many of Disney’s fans were not as sanguine of the need to talk of the accusations against the player. Disney did see support for her remarks. But others were less appreciative of what she had to say.

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