Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
'Birth Of A Nation's Nate Parker Won't Apologize For Rape Allegation
In an interview that will air on CBS's 60 Minutes on Sunday night, The Birth of a Nation director and actor Nate Parker says he won't apologize for the rape case that has resurfaced as the film is about to hit theaters.
When asked by Anderson Cooper whether he feels any guilt over the events that took place on the night of the alleged rape, Parker said, "I don't feel guilty."
When asked if he thinks he did anything morally wrong that night, Parker responded, "As a Christian man... just being in that situation, yeah, sure," but added that he has a different viewpoint now than he did that night, 17 years earlier.
In 1999, Nate Parker and his Birth of a Nation co-screenwriter Jean Celestin were accused of raping an 18-year-old woman when they were roommates and students at Penn State. The woman says she was unconscious during the sexual assault. Parker was acquitted and Celestin was sentenced to six months in prison, but appealed his verdict and was granted a new trial in 2005. The woman decided not to testify again and Celestin never went back to court.
Support for LAist comes from
In August, Variety reported that Parker and Celestin's accuser had taken her own life in 2012, after dropping out of college and suffering from depression after the case, according to her brother.
When asked in the 60 Minutes interview if he had anything to apologize for, Parker said "I was falsely accused... I went to court... I was vindicated. I feel terrible that this woman isn't here... her family had to deal with that, but as I sit here, an apology is—no."
Parker said he "had absolutely no idea" his accuser had taken her own life and "found out from the news."
"I was devastated, it was shocking. I couldn't believe it."
Parker directed, wrote, produced, and starred in The Birth of a Nation, a film about the 1831 slave rebellion led by Nat Turner. It premiered at Sundance, where the rights were purchased by Fox Searchlight for $17.5 million, the largest such deal in the festival's history. The rape case has resurfaced in the last few months as the film is set to be released next week, leading to a conversation that has eclipsed the film itself.
Earlier this month, Parker's Nation co-star Gabrielle Union penned an op-ed in the L.A. Times about her "stomach-churning confusion" over the controversy. Union herself is a victim of rape, as is her character in the film. Union writes that she took the role in order to give voice to the victims of rape: "I knew I could walk out of our movie and speak to the audience about what it feels like to be a survivor."
However in a column for Variety, the sister of Parker and Celestin's accuser condemns the filmmakers for writing the rape into Nat Turner's story and "exploiting my sister again":
Support for LAist comes from
I find it creepy and perverse that Parker and Celestin would put a fictional rape at the center of their film, and that Parker would portray himself as a hero avenging that rape. Given what happened to my sister, and how no one was held accountable for it, I find this invention self-serving and sinister, and I take it as a cruel insult to my sister's memory.
I think it's important for people to know Nat Turner's story. But people should know that Turner did not need rape to justify what he did. Parker and Celestin did not need to add that to Turner's story to make him more sympathetic.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity. -
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
Best of LAist