Emily Ratajkowski has accused photographer Jonathan Leder of sexually assaulting her during a photoshoot at his home in May of 2012.
In a piece written for The Cut, the model detailed the ordeal that took place when she was just 20-years-old.
Now, at 29, she recalls taking part in an unpaid editorial shoot, where at some point Leder allegedly put ‘his fingers inside of her’ while they were sitting on his couch together.
The shoot, arranged by her agent at the time in order to add to her modelling portfolio, consisted of both nude and lingerie shots, and Ratajkowski recalls being fed copious amounts of red wine during her time at the photographer’s home, despite being under the legal drinking age.
She recalls that she was “very, very drunk” by the time the shoot had wrapped up.
“I was cold, shivering, and huddled under a blanket,” she writes.
She then describes how Leder began asking her about her dating history.
“Most of what came next was a blur except for the feeling,” she says. “I don’t remember kissing, but I do remember his fingers suddenly being inside of me. Harder and harder and pushing and pushing like no one had touched me before or has touched me since. I could feel the shape of myself and my ridges, and it really, really hurt.”
Ratajkowski then says she leaped to stop it going any further.
“I brought my hand instinctively to his wrist and pulled his fingers out of me with force. I didn’t say a word. He stood up abruptly and scurried silently into the darkness up the stairs.”
Leder then did not acknowledge her presence.
“I was both confused as to why Jonathan had left without a word and terrified that he would come back,” she wrote.
Leder reportedly denied Ratajkowski’s allegations when contacted by The Cut.
Stating the claims were “too tawdry and childish to respond to,” Leder not only denied the allegations, but then added a sick jab about Ratajkowski’s past work.
“You do know who we are talking about right? This is the girl that was naked in Treats! magazine, and bounced around naked in the Robin Thicke video at that time,” he said, referring to her appearance in Thicke’s Blurred Lines video clip.
“You really want someone to believe she was a victim?”
In a statement to Insider, a rep from Leder’s photography company also added their two cents.
“We are all deeply disturbed to read Ms. Ratajkowski’s latest (false) statements to NY Mag in her never-ending search for press and publicity,” they wrote.
This comes after Leder literally published a book in 2016 titled Emily Ratajkowski, filled with photographs of the model from when she was starting out in the industry, which Ratajkowski says were not approved by her or her team.
According to the model, the book, which she called a “violation”, included some of the most “revealing and vulgar Polaroids he had taken.”
Castor Gallery in New York City then went on to use the images in a 2017 exhibition titled Polaroids. Despite efforts from Ratajkowski and her legal team to prove that she had not provided legitimate consent to the extended use of these images, the exhibition went ahead and Leder would go on to publish three more books containing the images; Two Nights With Emily and two editions of Unseen Ratajkowski.
Leder responded to her protests during a 2017 interview with Highsnobiety, stating “I guess they forget about the 1st Amendment in Los Angeles. I’m not sure why she would want to stop her fans from viewing these Polaroids. Who knows.”
In a post #MeToo world, where women’s voices and stories are being more amplified, Leder’s response, while unsurprising given his apparent disregard for the model, is still sickening and devoid of any empathy.
And we’ve seen many stories like Ratajkowski’s come up as the modelling industry becomes a focal point for change due its infamous reputation of turning a blind eye to sexual misconduct and exploitation of young models.
It’s uncertain how old Leder was at the time, but being in the position of an esteemed photographer working with a rookie model speaks to a problematic power dynamic that seems to be lost on the photographer.
Ratajkowski, who has been a long-time feminist advocate, has expressed her sadness that despite her call to boycott the exhibition and books on the grounds of her non-consent, people are still engaging with the content.
#Westandwithemily
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