The question of whether former Cosby Show star Bill Cosby's Presidential Medal of Freedom should be revoked has been asked quite a bit, considering over 30 women have accused Cosby of sexual assault. Well, at a Wednesday, July 15 press conference, President Obama addressed that exact matter. First, the President said there is no official precedent for revoking the medal from a recipient, but then he condemned Cosby for his alleged actions. Many people are speaking out about Obama's words, including many Twitter users.
Obama told reporters, "Any civilized country should have no tolerance for rape ... If you give a woman, or a man, a drug, then have sex with that person without consent ... That’s rape."
Ever since the claims against Cosby got renewed attention in the public eye in fall 2014, the comedian has remained somewhat mum. Back in November 2014, he responded via his lawyers with the following statement:
Over the last several weeks, decade-old, discredited allegations against Mr. Cosby have resurfaced. The fact that they are being repeated does not make them true. Mr. Cosby does not intend to dignify these allegations with any comment. He would like to thank all his fans for the outpouring of support and assure them that, at age 77, he is doing his best work. There will be no further statement from Mr. Cosby or any of his representatives.
As for the 2005 deposition documents acquired by the Associated Press in July 2015, which revealed Cosby admitted to obtaining Quaaludes to use to have sex with women, Cosby's rep responded as follows: "The only reason Mr. Cosby settled was because it would have been embarrassing in those days to put all those women on the stand and his family had no clue. That would have been very hurtful.”
With that said, here's what people on Twitter are saying about the President's statement:
As for celebrities commenting on Obama's statement, not many have posted anything on Twitter, save for actress Mia Farrow, shown here:
In addition to Farrow, many celebrities have been very outspoken about Cosby and the allegations brought against him prior to Obama commenting. From singer Jill Scott to director Judd Apatow to The View co-host Whoopi Goldberg to Girls leading lady Lena Dunham, they've either slammed Cosby, supported him, or changed their minds completely about the situation:
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