Michael Rainey Jr. struggled to deal with what happened to him when a woman groped him during a livestream. The Power actor released a statement reacting to the incident on Monday (June 10).
“At this point, everyone has seen the video circulating online,” Rainey wrote on Instagram Stories. “I am still in shock and don’t fully know how to process what happened last night. This is an unfortunate situation that I do not condone in any way. I can’t take it lightly because I know I would be in serious trouble if the roles were reversed.”
He continued, “The fact is sexual assault is never okay, regardless of gender or status. We’re all human, and we should respect each other. Most importantly, we should always respect ourselves.”
Rainey appeared on a livestream with streamer TyTy James on Sunday (June 9). A viral clip from the livestream showed James’ sister groping Rainey in front of children.
James initially defended his sister, saying she’d never seen someone of that “caliber.” He later rebuked her behavior and apologized to Rainey via social media.
“After the actions that occurred during my stream last night, I would like to sincerely apologize to Michael and his family for what took place,” James wrote. “My little sister was completely wrong and out of line. What she did was very inappropriate and unacceptable. I am truly embarrassed and disgusted by her actions.”
He added, “I completely respect whatever direction Michael wants to go in this situation. After watching the clip, I was completely taken back by what she done. I will take extreme precautions with future streams to avoid similar issues and have banned her from participating in future streams. I do not condone any type of sexual assault.”
Watch what happened to Rainey on James’ livestream below.
— Cxpium (@copiumx) June 10, 2024