Time’s Up President Apologizes for Participating in Effort To Discredit Cuomo Accuser

Tina Tchen, the president of Time’s Up, says she was inadvertently enlisted in an effort to discredit one of outgoing New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) accusers. In a statement on Wednesday, Tchen said, “I am sorry. As…

Bradley CortrightAug 12, 20213 min read

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“When our then-Board Chair Robbie Kaplan contacted me about actions in Cuomo’s office, I responded believing that, as they had been in the past, his office was interested in doing the right thing for women. The facts revealed in the Attorney General’s findings — that the letter was drafted by Cuomo as part of an ongoing effort to undermine the survivors — were completely unknown to me until the investigation’s report was released. I would never participate in or condone, in any way, such an attack or strategy.”

She added, “I believe we were used as cover for heinous actions going on behind the scenes and, more recently, being used to distract and distort the actual legal and moral violations that occurred. But that in no way excuses my oversight and mistakes in failing to protect survivors and our work, and I recognize that similar scenarios may have played out in the past that I failed to see for what they were. For that, again, I am profoundly sorry.”

Finally, Tchen committed to “work openly in a collaborative process with our staff, survivors, our board, partners, allies, critics and the entire community that’s worked with us from the start” to earn the trust “of the communities I’ve let down.”

Kaplan resigned earlier this week, as IJR reported.

According to its website, Time’s Up “insists upon a world where everyone is safe and respected at work. A world where women have an equal shot at success and security. A world where no one lives in fear of sexual harassment or assault.”