5 Accusers Speak Out Against Bill Cosby

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Five of the dozen or so women who have accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault appeared during a joint interview that aired Monday evening to condemn the famed actor and comedian in primetime.

“It’s unbelievable to be in the presence of these great women. It’s a sisterhood,” Barbara Bowman, whose Washington Post op-ed last month helped reignite discussion about the allegations, said on CNN. “The glue that bonds us might be morbid and sad and awful, but … I feel very protective of these people.”

Bill Cosby’s Public Life in Photos

The Ed Sullivan Show
Bill Cosby performs on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. CBS/Getty Images
Bill Cosby
A portrait of Bill Cosby taken in 1965.Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Cosby
Bill Cosby poses with his Emmy for his role in I Spy at the Primetime Emmy Awards in New York City in 1966. AP
Comedian Bill Cosby holding cigar
A portrait of Bill Cosby taken in 1969.Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
The Second Bill Cosby Special
Bill Cosby performs on The Second Bill Cosby Special in 1969.Fred Sabine—NBC/Getty Images
Ron Galella Archive - File Photos
Bill Cosby attends the "Concert at Town Hall" at Town Hall in New York City in 1971.Ron Galella—WireImage/Getty Images
The Bill Cosby Show
Bill Cosby as Chet Kincaid on The Bill Cosby Show.NBC/Getty Images
The Cosby Show
Bill Cosby as Dr. Heathcliff 'Cliff' Huxtable in The Cosby Show.Frank Carroll—NBC/Getty Images
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
Bill Cosby is interviewed by Jay Leno on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno in 1992.Wendy Perl—NBC/Getty Images
Bill Cosby
Bill Cosby speaks to an audience on the campus of the University of the District of Columbia in 2006, in Washington D.C.LAWRENCE JACKSON—AP
The 2011 Jackie Robinson Foundation Awards Gala - Dinner
Host Bill Cosby speaks onstage at the 2011 Jackie Robinson Foundation awards gala atThe Waldorf Astoria in 2011 in New York City. Stephen Lovekin—Getty Images
2011 Temple University Commencement
Bill Cosby attends the 2011 Temple University Commencement at the Liacouras Center in 2011 in Philadelphia, Pa.Gilbert Carrasquillo—Getty Images
2014 American Comedy Awards - Press Room
Bill Cosby attends the 2014 American Comedy Awards at Hammerstein Ballroom on April 26, 2014 in New York City. Andrew Toth—FilmMagic/Getty Images

From their accounts of how Cosby allegedly raped them to the details of their traumatic experiences trying to recover, the women shared remarkably similar stories. They all said the actor had drugged and raped them; four of the five said they told someone in the immediate aftermath of the alleged crime, but were discouraged from going further. All five women said they have never sought financial compensation from Cosby and agreed they never would accept it.

“I want him to suffer like we’ve all suffered,” said P.J. Masten, who said she was assaulted by Cosby in 1979. Masten said she knows other women who have not yet come forward.

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Write to Justin Worland at justin.worland@time.com