This past Juneteenth was one to remember for Aoki Lee Simmons.
The 20-year-old called out her dad Russell Simmons, 65, for being verbally abusive and controlling. The conflict began after her sister, Ming Lee, wished her mom and former model Kimora Simmons a Happy Father’s Day.
Aoki ended up exposing her father via FaceTime screenshots and text messages on social media. Her decision to do so received mixed reactions of both sympathy and some backlash. She has since addressed the backlash she’s been receiving in a series of Instagram stories, claiming men have been saying some downright despicable things to her.
“Until a short time ago, this is the man who told me ‘always defend and look after your mother girls’ and ‘never let a man curse at you, you call daddy if a man ever tries to yell at you or scare you that’s never ok! Real men don’t shout at women and girls,'” the recent Harvard graduate and model wrote to accompany a picture of herself and her famous father when she was a child.
“So to all the toxic men in my comments using ‘I’m defending him’ to be foul and talk about all the grievances you have with women, you can save it,” she continued. “It’s pathetic. He would agree I know that for sure.”
Aoki shared a follow-up story with quotes that read, “‘Always defend your mother and sister’ and ‘Don’t let any man talk to you crazy'” alongside the text, “I’m just following instructions here ppl.”
In her initial post, Aoki disclosed that her father allegedly calls her shouting when she doesn’t agree with things he says, calls her friends and boyfriend, harasses her grandmother and speaks foul of her mother, Kimora. This apparently wasn’t always the case. The college grad claimed that his behavior changed for the worst after Russell found himself dealing with sexual misconduct allegations that came to light in 2017.
In her recent Instagram Stories addressing the negative comments, she continued, “I wonder how your mothers, sisters, daughters, nieces, girlfriends, wives, would feel after seeing some of the sexist, racist, honestly foul comments and messages some of you ‘men’ are leaving me,” she wrote.
Simmons added that she has seen “misogynistic stereotypes and names” and “absolute hate for women” in her inbox.
“I only see one bitter mess in a DM between a 40+-year-old male stranger yelling at me about ‘all the bitter black women’ I represent, and it’s not the 20-year-old on the receiving end,” she wrote.
Kimora, 48, also took to Instagram to reveal that her ex-husband stopped financially supporting their kids during their final year of college. The former Baby Phat CEO also alleged that she has been financially supporting him to the tune of millions over the past few years, and that he’s displayed erratic behavior, including buying flowers and claiming they were sent by her.
Aoki’s tearful Instagram post was a point of debate for social media users with some accusing her of being a spoiled rich kid who is upset because her father stopped giving her money. Others empathized with her for having to endure verbal abuse and hostile behavior from her father.
We hope this family finds peace and healing, and that people ease up on these young women as they navigate a complicated relationship with their father.