Reality stars face fallout for racist acts
Television stars are finally facing consequences for racist behaviour
In April 2018, Vanderpump Rules star Stassi Schroeder went on a podcast and told a story about how she and her co-star, Kristen Doute, called the police when they thought a photo of an alleged robber in a Daily Mail article looked like their former cast member Faith Stowers.
The woman in the photo wasn’t Stowers — the only thing they had in common is they were both Black. Still, at the time, Doute also tweeted her suspicions with a link to another article from the Los Angeles NBC station.
While this did not strike Schroeder or Doute as problematic two years ago, U.S. cable station Bravo fired them both last week, days after Stowers shared this anecdote in an Instagram Live chat.
In addition, the network confirmed Vanderpump cast members Max Boyens and Brett Caprioni, who both apologized in January for past racist tweets, will not be returning to the show, which is in its eighth season.
Racist behaviour from reality TV stars has gone on for years, and viewers have railed against it online. Executives and producers typically do nothing: After all, they cast outrageous personalities who say outrageous things, which translates to attention and ratings. Sometimes these controversies lead to a tearful apology or a denial. But given the current reckoning over racism and police brutality, with protests across the world to support the Black Lives Matter movement, networks are realizing there must be consequences.
In addition to Bravo, Lifetime has pulled the plug on dance teacher Abby Lee Miller’s Dance Moms spinoff after students’ parents detailed Miller’s past alleged racist comments. MTV fired The Challenge star Dee Nguyen over “offensive” social media posts about the Black Lives Matter movement. In some cases, stars themselves reached their breaking point: Rachel Lindsay, the only Black lead in Bachelor franchise history and cohost of the show’s official podcast, said last week she would cut ties with the series if producers didn’t address the lack of diversity and racist behaviour from contestants. Producers promptly announced that Matt James would be the first Black male lead for the 25th season.
As for Vanderpump Rules, an extremely popular Bravo series, fans were stunned that the network took action. Schroeder, the show’s biggest breakout star with a bestselling book and hit podcast, has made plenty of offensive statements in the past: calling an outfit “Nazi chic”; sighing that she was over “everyone making everything about race” in regards to the #Oscarssowhite campaign; saying that women who revealed stories of sexual harassment wanted to be part of the “#Metoo trend.”
After the latter, multiple sponsors severed partnerships with her podcast. Now, Schroeder has been dropped by her talent agency and PR firm, and lost her gig as a columnist at Glamour. Doute, who just released a book, is no longer represented by her literary agency.
Schroeder and Doute’s call to the police was only re-shared recently because, as Stowers explained during a chat on Instagram with MTV star Candice Rice, she started getting messages from people who noticed Vanderpump Rules cast members were posting about Black Lives Matter. “I know some of them, and I know they definitely don’t care about Black people like that,” Stowers said.
Stowers said she experienced repeated bullying from the Vanderpump cast, including her hair being called “nappy.” Stowers first heard Schroeder and Doute reported her to the police when Schroeder appeared on a now-deleted episode of the podcast B---- Bible.
“They thought it was me because it was a Black woman with a weave,” Stowers said.
When Stowers’s comments blew up online, Schroeder and Doute released apologies on Instagram. Schroeder: “What I did to Faith was wrong. I apologize and I do not expect forgiveness.” Doute: “Although my actions were not racially driven, I am now completely aware of how my privilege blinded me from the reality of law enforcement’s treatment of the Black community, and how dangerous my actions would have been to her.” No word yet from Taylor.
Miller, of Dance Moms, was also called out for hypocrisy after she posted a black square for #Blackouttuesday, a music industry campaign to support Black artists. Adriana Smith, whose seven-yearold daughter Kamryn appeared on season 8, responded with a statement that started with the hashtag #Dontactlikeyoucare. “People need to be held accountable not just for the injustices but also for being a closet racist,” she wrote. She said that Miller once compared her growing up in “the country club” to Adriana growing up “in the hood,” and that Kamryn overheard someone say the show needed “a sprinkle of colour.”
Miller apologized on Instagram: “I realize that racism can come not just from hate, but also from ignorance. No matter the cause, it is harmful, and it is my fault.” Entertainment Weekly has reported that Miller will no longer appear on Dance Moms if it’s renewed for another season, and a planned spinoff is cancelled.
The Washington Post