“The Bachelor” producers broke their silence to condemn the harassment received by Rachel Lindsay from Bachelor Nation.
“As executive producers of The Bachelor Franchise, we want to make it clear that any harassment of Rachel Lindsay in the aftermath of her interview with Chris Harrison is completely inexcusable,” the statement began. tweeted during the “Women Tell All” episode of the reality series Monday night.
“Rachel received an unimaginable amount of hatred and was subjected to serious online bullying, which is often rooted in racism. This is totally unacceptable, “the statement continued. “Rachel has been an incredible advocate of our cast and we are grateful that she has worked tirelessly on racial equality and inclusion.”
Lindsay, 35, who was the first black “Bachelorette” contestant in 2017, deleted her Instagram last week after an onslaught of cyberbullying after she confronted Harrison about alleged racist behavior by current contestant Rachael Kirkconnell.
Following the interview in which Harrison defended Kirkconnell, the longtime ABC host apologized and walked away from the program. He is replaced by Emmanuel Acho to present ‘The Bachelor: After The Final Rose’.
Lindsay said Harrison made the right decision to leave the franchise, but Lindsay’s “Higher Learning” podcast co-host, Van Lathan, said the setback caused her to drop out of social media.
‘Rachel is not responsible for Chris Harrison, a 49-year-old man who could not read the room at this 2021 time. “She is not responsible for that,” he said. ‘It is not her job to make excuses or offer cover to someone who does not understand what the f – k people are causing in today’s world. It’s not. You are running after the wrong person. ‘
Kirkconnell, who competes for Matt James’ heart, also apologized for her behavior in the past and asked fans to stop defending her.