Known as “Jane Doe 1”, a victim of producer Harvey Weinstein decided to reveal his identity in an interview for the Hollywood Reporter Friday.
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“I am Evgeniya, I was raped. This is my story,” said Evgeniya Chernyshova, 43 and mother of three.
Of the four women who testified they were sexually assaulted by Weinstein in Los Angeles, Ms Chernyshova’s accusations were the only ones to result in a conviction.
This decision was made following the announcement, the day before, of the 16-year prison sentence for the film producer, as part of his trial in Los Angeles.
“I thought it was a good decision to protect my children,” she said on condition of anonymity. But it was a horrible decision for me because I was cut off from everyone. It’s not right to go through this hell alone. »
In September 2017, a conversation with her daughter Maria, then 16, changed Ms Chernyshova’s perspective.
“It all started when I told my mother regarding the sexual assault I suffered in the second year of high school,” said her daughter Maria, now 21.
Ms Chernyshova wanted Maria to tell the police regarding the boy who attacked her and continued to abuse her, but Maria protested. “I told her she would never really be able to understand me,” Maria said. “And she told me she understood, because she had been raped”.
Mother and daughter then made a pact: both present their cases to the police.
A few weeks later, the New York Times and the New Yorker published their famous investigations into the actions of Harvey Weinstein and Evgeniya realized that his rape was not an isolated incident.
“I believe all the victims who testified,” said Ms. Chernyshova following the verdict. All victims. And I mean this – it’s not just my victory, it’s our victory. »