Florence Pugh Feels 'Rage' Amid Cornell Sexual Assault Scandal, Instagram Censorship: 'The Fear of It Lives in Our Bodies'

Oscar-nominated Little Women star Florence Pugh said she feels "so much rage" over the sexual assault allegations against seven former Cornell University fraternity members as a guest on The View on Wednesday, September 30.

She appeared on the show to promote her new Netflix series East of Eden, and said Instagram had censored her posts about the case.

"R--- is something that lives. The fear of it lives in our bodies," she said.

Co-host Sara Haines brought up the case during the show's "Hot Topics" segment.

She said, "Even in modern times, women have to bear the consequences of sexual violence, like the allegations currently playing out with the so-called Cornell 7," and then asked Pugh, "Can you explain why you felt the need to speak up?"

Pugh stated that she was speaking out for "all women."

She explained, "When stories like this come out, and it's really not picked up in the way that you hope it's picked up, it makes me feel scared, it makes me feel anxious, it made me feel so much rage."

Pugh said she felt fortunate to be able to speak about the case on the show after Instagram restricted her posts.

"I'm able to come here and talk about it in real life, even though, sadly, Instagram censored me when I said it, which is also just another shock that women are censored," she said, adding that "even when they go through these things, they can't talk about it."

Instagram placed a content warning over Pugh's first post that reads, "This post contains content that some people may find upsetting." She followed up with a second post blasting Instagram.

"Instagram decided to block my post from getting in front of the right people. Tut tut tut. Oh dear," she wrote. "That doesn't look great does it?" The second post was similarly flagged.

In her initial post, Pugh referred to the alleged assault as a "horrific act" that caused her to feel "uneasy and sick and anxious." She stated she was "processing quietly and watching everything and everyone and every man."

Pugh also appealed directly to men when she wrote, "This is really the moment where we need our men to be as horrified and as sickened as us." Mariska Hargitay and Hudson Williams have also spoken out about the case.

A former student of Cornell University, who is referred to as Jane Doe in the court documents, filed a civil lawsuit on Wednesday, September 16, against seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity. Doe accuses them of drugging her and then sexually assaulting her in October 2024. The lawsuit also names Cornell University, the Chi Phi fraternity, and Doe's sorority as defendants in the case, according to a report.

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten announced on Monday, September 28, that his office will present the case to a grand jury. Van Houten said no charges were filed in 2024 because Doe's initial statement to the police "described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as voluntary, conscious, and consensual."

No charges have been filed against any of the men, and an attorney for one of them denies the allegations against his client.