Arcade Fire’s Win Butler Accused of Sexual Misconduct By A Fifth Person

Arcade Fire singer Win Butler has been accused of sexual misconduct by a fifth person.

On November 22, a woman using the pseudonym Sabina told Pitchfork that Butler was “emotionally abusive, manipulative, and toxic” throughout the course of their three-year relationship.

“It was an ongoing abusive relationship,” she shared. “Emotionally abusive, manipulative, toxic, and using his power dynamic to exploit my body at times that were convenient for him. He met me when I was so vulnerable.”

According to her, they met in 2015 when Butler was 35 and Sabina, just 22. At the time, she was freshly out of a rigid religious community, and he was, of course, in a widely famous band.

Sabina accused Butler of frequently requesting explicit photos over text and sending her unsolicited nude photos of himself.

Allegedly, if she didn’t engage in sexting and sending and appreciating photos, things got ugly. “He would make you feel so bad about it,” she recalled. “You’re being cut off from contact if you don’t agree to sexual favors.”

The four people who accused Butler of sexual misconduct taking place between 2016 and 2020 had similar stories.

Three of them claimed Butler took advantage of the power imbalance and pressured them into providing sexual favors over the phone and in person. The fourth accuser detailed Butler kissing and touching them without their consent.

In August 2017, Sabina sent Butler a long text saying that his obsession with sex made her feel like she was not “even a person,” to which he responded “thanks for the note.” Butler then reportedly sent her a photo of him masturbating.

Sabina emphasized that she “hadn’t asked for [that photo] at all.”

“It just felt really, really disrespectful and scary and gross,” she shared. “It felt like that specific encounter was crossing a line that he shouldn’t have crossed, and it was shocking.”

Sabina explained that she did not always explicitly say “no” when she was uncomfortable, so it’s possible Butler assumed that their sexual encounters were consensual.

Nevertheless, she called Butler “abusive” and “really aggressive.”

“I felt like I just had to do what he said,” she said. “I was not really comfortable with some of the things he was asking me to do, but doing them anyway. And that is ultimately dehumanizing.”

“But the only value I ever held for him was performing sexual acts whenever he wanted,” she added.

Butler has not publicly responded to Sabina’s allegations.