Zinzi Clemmons Steps Back From Writing For Lena Dunham’s Newsletter

Lena Dunham has long been an unnecessary addition to our lives, and this weekend her ridiculousness was exemplified when she released a statement defending one of her friends who was accused of raping actress Aurora Perrineau when she was 17. It’s not right for anyone to call someone else’s experiences/trauma into question–but this one was especially troubling since Aurora is a woman of color, and Dunham is constantly being accused of being a feminist only interested in the advancement of white women.

Writer Zinzi Clemmons released a statement early Sunday morning explaining why she will no longer be writing for Lena and Jennifer Konner’s newsletter Lenny Letter, a decision sparked by the women’s defense of Murray Miller’s alleged rape. She calls on other women of color to hold Lena Dunham accountable by divesting any money, energy or ties, and also tells stories about knowing who the Girls creator is and has been for a long time.

My statement on why I will no longer write for @lennyletter, and the behavior I witnessed firsthand from @lenadunham's friends. It is time for women of color–black women in particular–to divest from Lena Dunham. pic.twitter.com/dxOWCLhTpA — zinziclemmons (@zinziclemmons) November 19, 2017

Clemmons refers to Dunham’s friend circle both currently and years back in college as a group of people who exemplify, “hipster racism.” She explains one story of a white girl in the group who would constantly use the n-word in conversation just to elicit a reaction, then retort, “it’s just a joke.” Zinzi details the “it’s just a joke” defense as being common for Dunham’s friends, who she says constantly used sarcasm as a cover for their racism.

It’s brave of Ms. Clemmons to take money out of her own pocket in order to ensure Lena Dunham gets the message loud and clear, and she’s encouraging other women in a similar position to do the same thing.