Morgan Criticizes Phylicia Rashad's Cosby Remarks

The ongoing controversy surrounding Bill Cosby has caused a range of reactions from various celebrities. On one hand, some are convinced of the comedian's guilt, while others have flat-out dismissed the allegations brought against Cosby by more than 20 women and counting. On Wednesday, former Cosby Show actress Phylicia Rashad defended Cosby, saying that she believes the allegations against the 77-year-old are an attempt to destroy his legacy. Rashad's decision to solely express compassion towards Cosby while blatantly ignoring the purported victims sparked an immediate backlash, and rightfully so. Amongst those who vehemently disagree with Rashad's comments is Piers Morgan, who openly criticized Rashad for defending Cosby during his appearance on The Meredith Vieira Show.

The 49-year-old talk show host didn't mince words when explaining his stance. "How many [women] have there been?" Morgan said. "Twenty-five? 30? All saying exactly the same thing. All describing a very similar pattern of drug and sex related abuse by one of America's biggest stars and I don’t think it's conscionable for anyone right now to be employing Bill Cosby while these allegations remain unresolved. He’s going on tour."

Morgan then continued, saying, "The trashing of these women now by people, like this lady, who was his on-screen wife, I find it pretty reprehensible. She’s entitled to [defend him] and I’m entitled to find that reprehensible."

While Morgan has endured some criticism of his own due to his opinion on the use of the N-word and his super insensitive interview with Janet Mock, he makes an excellent point about Rashad's remarks. Sure, Cosby has yet to face formal charges, and the rising number of the alleged victims' accounts are all anyone has to rely on. Also, for someone who has a personal history with Cosby, Rashad may very well feel some sort of allegiance to her former co-star, but her declaration to Nightline that "this is not about the women," is severely disturbing and it also couldn't be further from the truth. The point that many people who have Rashad's mindset seem to be missing is that to dismiss the alleged victims and their accounts of being raped, drugged or otherwise assaulted is to directly contribute to the sickening trend of victim-shaming. There's really not an upside to this entire Cosby debacle, but there's still the possibility that the voices of celebrities like Morgan will somehow help to counteract the awful behavior that Rashad's one-sided attitude encourages.Image: Getty Images