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Zeke Thomas, Isiah Thomas' Son, Says He Was Raped

(WWJ) At night, he's a DJ spinning in the hottest clubs in New York City, but Zeke Thomas, the 28-year-old son of Pistons legend Isiah Thomas, was living with a dark secret inside.

In a series of news interviews, Thomas revealed he's been raped -- twice.

Thomas, who is openly gay,  said a man forced himself on him a year ago in his New York City apartment. He added that he was also raped as a 12-year-old.

And yes, he eventually told his parents about it.

"At first I didn't realize what had happened, what had transpired. I knew that it was wrong, I knew that I did not want it. I did not seek it out," he told Good Morning America about the incident at age 12. "I hadn't let my family know until much later that this had happened."

He added, "It was definitely hard for them to hear, and even more hard for them to hear that it happened again."

Thomas went on to tell Good Morning America he was "terrified" when he was raped again last year, saying, "I really felt that my manhood had been taken from me."

He did not press charges in either instance of rape, explaining that he "just wasn't ready" and did not want to be labeled a "victim."

But he would do it differently if he could go back and make the decision again.

"If I could go back, there's 100 percent I would press charges," Thomas said. "If we could find...the assailant today, I would 100 percent press charges."

Thomas said he's telling his story now to draw awareness to men as victims of sexual assault. He appears in a new PSA  for Sexual Assault Awareness Month and serves as an ambassador for the NSVRC, an organization dedicated to "preventing and responding to sexual violence through collaboration, sharing and creating resources, and promoting research," according to its website.

Thomas said his parents have been supportive as he grapples with the violence he has suffered in his life. "They let me know they're here for me and [said], 'We're gonna do everything in our power to help your through this journey,'" Thomas said.

His father Isiah Thomas, whose NBA nickname was Zeke, was a point guard and 12-time NBA All-Star who was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was taken as the No. 2 pick by the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Draft, playing for them his entire career, 1981–1994. He led the "Bad Boys" to the 1988–89 and 1989–90 NBA championships.

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