mayim bialik

Mayim Bialik Apologizes for Her Controversial Harvey Weinstein Op-Ed

Photo: Steve Granitz/WireImage

Mayim Bialik has issued an apology on social media for the New York Times op-ed she wrote last week about being a “nontraditional looking” actress in Hollywood. The Big Bang Theory star landed in hot water among some readers who were upset about the connections Bialik seemed to draw between her choice to dress modestly and how she has managed to escape three decades in the industry without an encounter like those detailed by Harvey Weinstein’s accusers.

“Let me say clearly and explicitly that I am very sorry,” Bialik wrote on Twitter. “What you wear and how you behave does not provide any protection from assault, nor does the way you dress or act in any way make you responsible for being assaulted; you are never responsible for being assaulted.”

In her Times essay, Bialik explained that though she had never been the victim of sexual harassment, “I still make choices every day as a 41-year-old actress that I think of as self-protecting and wise … I dress modestly. I don’t act flirtatiously with men as a policy.” She did, however, concede that many young feminists might find her choices “oppressive,” and said they should be able to dress however — and flirt with whomever — they want. She asked rhetorically, “Why are we the ones who have to police our behavior?”

Mayim Bialik Apologizes for Controversial Weinstein Op-Ed