I know a lot of my readers have no interest in drama or anything like that and I completely respect that, if this is not a topic that interests you or that you have an opinion about please don’t read the rest of this post. Read my recent post about the Bourjois Velvet Lipsticks here instead. A few days ago Jaclyn Hill posted a snapchat when Kathleen Fuentes (Kathleen Lights) came over to her house to collaborate on a video. In the snap, Kathleen is playing a video game and says n**** the f***. You can watch the short 9-sec clip below, be sure to turn the volume up so you can hear it.
Understandably, a lot of people feel some type of way about it. I want to be clear that I abhor all racism and racial slurs, but this particular slur is not directed at me or my particular group of brown humans so this is not a I-am-so-offended post, however I do have some thoughts and feelings on this occurrence. A lot of her fans are defending her etc. and I will start by saying I am subscribed to both Kathleen and Jaclyn and I don’t intend to unsubscribe but that does not mean I think this is okay. I will include screenshots of their respective apologies (Kathleen and Jaclyn) to read.
Firstly, a lot of heat was sent to Jaclyn for posting the snap in the first place. Allegedly, in the background Kathleen and someone else says don’t post that. I, personally, don’t think the snap is clear enough to corroborate this but Kathleen nevertheless says that she said not to post it in her written apology. I don’t care. You still said it. You still used the word and whether you said to post it or not it’s completely on you. Leave Jaclyn alone, she doesn’t deserve that heat, however, some people think Jaclyn is laughing at the use of the word when she is laughing at whatever Kathleen is doing.
My biggest BIGGEST issue is when people with large followings get caught making a mistake and not being perfect they go to their default excuse: “That wasn’t me” or “That’s not who I am“. It’s bullshit. She dropped the word way too casually for it to be a one time offence and it bothers me that she is just pretending to be perfect when she isn’t. Why can’t people just apologise properly instead of making a list of excuses i.e. I told her not to post it, I was drunk, I never normally use words like that. That is what bothers me the most and what has made me lose some respect for her.
We don’t all use perfect language all the time, and I am sure I have used offensive words myself ignorantly and stupidly. But if you have a following of that amount the least you should know is how to apologise properly, take responsibility for your actions and educate the masses on why it was wrong of you to do it. That is the least you can do. I am getting sick of half-assed apologies from brands and YouTubers when they fuck up. Nobody’s perfect but learn how to say you are sorry.
Thank you for reading, if you did read this. Apologies if it didn’t interest you. I only wanted to write a short post about why her apology and the reaction this incident got irks me on such a deep level. The excuse that she didn’t use it in a derogatory way or in an offensive or racial way is also complete trash. That is not an excuse. Yes, she didn’t say it to hurt anyone but the truth is it did and that is something you should be sorry for. In her defense, she is sorry and she has apologised profusely. Like I said, if this was directed at me and she said a word that would be personally offensive to me I don’t know if I would be supporting her anymore and that is the truth. As it is I am no longer going to purchase her collaborations, I know she is working on a lip gloss. That is simply a personal choice, I am just getting a bit sick of being disappointed by people who claim to be better. But as mentioned I still watch and enjoy her videos. I am just disappointed. Take care.
Do you have any thoughts on this?