Ellen Degeneres has spoken out again about sexual abuse she allegedly suffered as a teen.
The talk show host has gone public with claims of being abused by her mother’s husband before, in 2005, but this time has gone into more detail on David Letterman’s indepth interview series for Netflix, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, in a bid to encourage other abuse survivors, and particularly young girls, to not be afraid and tell someone if they have been abused.
Degeneres has claimed that her abuse started when she was 15, after her mother Betty Degeneres was diagnosed with breast cancer, but she didn’t tell her mother or anyone else for a number of years because she didn’t want to “ruin her [mother’s] happiness”.
When she did eventually tell Betty she was not believed, and Betty stayed with her husband another 18 years.
Degeneres has said that her mother’s husband convinced her he needed to check her breasts for lumps after her mother’s diagnosis.
“He convinced me that he needs to feel my breasts and then he tries to do it again another time, and then another time,” the Relatable star says in her interview with Letterman.
She says he eventually tried to break into her room.
“He tries to break my door down, and I kicked the window out and ran ’cause I knew it was going to go more to something.”
Degeneres told Letterman she felt it was important to talk about it “because there’s so many young girls and it doesn’t matter how old you are”. She was concerned that women “don’t feel like we’re worthy, or we’re scared to have a voice, and we’re scared to say no”.
She felt angry when she heard stories of victims not being believed.
“We just don’t make stuff up. And I like men, but there are so many men that get away with so much.”
The 61-year-old said she was still angry at herself for not speaking up sooner.
“It’s a really horrible, horrible story and the only reason I’m actually going to go into detail about it is because I want other girls to not ever let someone do that.”
When Degeneres spoke about her alleged abuse in 2005, she divulged that many she’d confided in had assumed that that was why she was gay, but she said this was not the case at all.
If you’ve been sexually abused you can reach out to these organisations
The New Zealand police – there is advice here on how to report a sexual assault that happened very recently, or some time ago: www.police.govt.nz
Lifeline – ph. 0800 543354
Youthline – ph. 0800 376 633
