Afrika Bambaataa denied accusations of sexual abuse leveled against of him by former Zulu Nation associate Ronald Savage.
"I, Afrika Bambaataa, want to take this opportunity at the advice of my legal counsel to personally deny any and all allegations of any type of sexual molestation of anyone," Bambaataa said in a statement to Rolling Stone. "These allegations are baseless and are a cowardly attempt to tarnish my reputation and legacy in hip-hop at this time. This negligent attack on my character will not stop me from continuing my battle and standing up against the violence in our communities, the violence in the nation and the violence worldwide.
"In the name of the Supreme Force, who is called by many names, whom All Praise is due. Good Spiritual Human, I pray for all of you and ask in returns your prayers, and let us all do what we must to help change our ways on how we treat each other in evilness, to respect and love for each other as Humans Beings," Bambaataa continues in his statement. "May Peace and Blessings be upon each and everyone of you. Who would stand up to save us and our planet with so much chaos going on? Peace, Love, Honor and Respect to all."
In his self-published memoir "Impulse Urges and Fantasies," Savage alleges that he was a 15-year-old "crate boy" -- the nickname for kids who assisted the Zulu Nation with their equipment -- when Bambaataa first molested him.
In a statement to the Daily News, who first broke the story, Bambaataa's lawyer Vivian Kimi Tozaki roundly denounced Savage's accusations and denied any wrongdoing on Bambaataa's part. “Defamatory statements were published seeking to harm my client’s reputation so as to lower him in the estimation of the community while deterring others from associating or dealing with him," she said. "The statements show a reckless disregard for the truth, were published with knowledge of their falsity and are being made by a lesser-known person seeking publicity."
Savage says that he is not interested in money, but rather hopes to change the New York Statute of Limitations that bars child sexual abuse victims from pursuing legal action after their 23rd birthday. Read more about Savage's claims here.
