In truly chilling news in an already high-profile case, Lauren Pisciotta, the former assistant who alleged Kanye West of sexual harassment and rape, has allegedly gone into hiding. Pisciotta has since gone into hiding over fears for her safety following the lawsuit she filed against the controversial rapper/ fashion designer, according to her attorney, Arick Fudali, who spoke to Page Six in a recent interview.
The fact that Pisciotta has gone off the map speaks very loudly to the seriousness of her allegations and the traumatic blowback she’s faced since coming forward. Fudali did not pull punches, “Lauren, as I’ve said in public before, is basically in hiding. She is very afraid of Mr. West and Mr. West’s circle and Mr. West’s supporters. She’s received an enormous amount of online backlash and ridicule and hatred,” he said. “Really ugly, gross stuff. So she literally is currently in hiding, and I can’t reveal even the vicinity of where she lives. That’s how serious it is for her right now.”
Pisciotta’s original lawsuit was replete with troubling details of workplace misconduct, such as graphic, racially tinged messages and videos that West allegedly sent to Pisciotta. The report described an atmosphere of a toxic workplace riddled with power imbalance, misconduct, and bullying. A later amended complaint would ramp up the allegations, alleging that Kanye West drugged and gang-raped her during a recording session allegedly in the presence of Diddy.
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In perhaps the most shocking revelation, Pisciotta claimed that West had a sick sexual obsession with women’s mums and referenced an alleged text to his current wife Bianca Censori in which he told her, “I wanna f*ck your mum. Before she leaves.” That and everything else has done nothing but stoke the media circus around this case. “The Bloom Firm took it over. We’ve been meeting and conferring on various issues with the court and with Mr. West’s counsel. “Our intention is to, in the immediate future, file a second amended complaint, which will update the allegations and charges and claims,” Fudali said.
As the legal process continues to play out, Pisciotta’s disappearance does prompt a larger question about the dangers inherent when whistleblowers or alleged victims put their name behind their accusations, especially when said allegations are aimed at powerful men like Kanye West. The internet can be cruel, and that meanness has become a source of real-life danger for Pisciotta. Those who support Pisciotta have said she had been forced into hiding, which demonstrates the chilling of victims and the empowerment of those in authority. In fact, the court of public opinion, especially online, frequently metastasizes into a form of abuse for accusers before the legal process even has an opportunity to jump in.
West has not yet publicly addressed the additional allegations. He is largely a controversial figure in entertainment and pop culture. Formerly admired for his musical genius and fashion influence, his public persona has more recently been clouded in controversy, and this lawsuit has the potential to further define that narrative. As the matter moves through the court system and Pisciotta’s attorneys prepare an even more powerful, fleshed-out amended complaint, the question is what the system and the public will do next. Now, Pisciotta is out of view, but her voice and allegations echo on.
