‘The Bachelor’ Greer Blitzer Addresses Blackface Controversy at the Women Tell All
During The Bachelor Season 27, Women Tell All, Greer Blitzer addressed the controversy surrounding tweets she wrote defending blackface. This is far from the first time a contestant in the franchise has come under fire for past racist actions, though it isn’t always addressed. Here’s what Greer said at the Women Tell All.
[Spoiler alert: The Bachelor Season 27 spoilers ahead regarding the Women Tell All.]
Bachelor Nation unearthed racist tweets of Greer Blitzer defending blackface
Early on in the airing of The Bachelor Season 27, viewers dug up controversial past tweets from Greer Blitzer. Greer defended a student who dressed up as Tupac Shakur, writing that the unnamed person “didn’t even know what blackface was” and that she “did not paint herself black because she felt superior to black people.”
After fans unearthed the tweets, Greer took to social media to apologize. In an Instagram story, she wrote, “In my past, I have made some uneducated, ignorant, and frankly, wrong comments on my social media accounts. In particular, I used misguided arguments on Twitter to defend a student who dressed in Blackface as Tupac for Halloween.”
She continued, “I am deeply sorry to those I have hurt, especially those within the Black community, not because these screenshots have resurfaced, but because I ever shared these harmful opinions at all. Time and age do not excuse my actions, but this is not a reflection of who I am today.”
Greer addressed the blackface controversy during ‘The Bachelor’ Women Tell All
During The Bachelor Season 27 Women Tell All, Jesse Palmer invited Greer onstage to address the blackface controversy. “What I failed to mention in my apology was that what happened was racist,” Greer said on the show. “It’s not about the intent. It’s about the impact.”
“This acquaintance of mine that I knew performing blackface was racist. Me defending it was racist. My ignorance was racist,” Greer continued. “I’m just so ashamed. I’m just deeply sorry that I hurt the Black community. I can’t go back in time. All I can do is try to be better now and try to do better in my future.”
Jesse also stated that Greer talked with Dr. Kira Banks, a noted Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion consultant. Greer said that their conversation helped her to learn to think before speaking. It also inspired her to research the history of blackface and understand why it was offensive.
“It was a symbolism for dehumanizing the Black community,” Greer said of blackface, reiterating that defending her acquaintance who dressed in blackface was racist. Dr. Banks was in the audience that evening. She spoke briefly on the importance of educating ourselves and being willing to “do something different.”
Reality Steve compares Greer’s apology to Erich Schwer
Greer Blitzer is far from the first contestant in Bachelor Nation to come under fire for past racist actions. Erich Schwer became a controversial figure when images of him dressed in blackface as Jimi Hendrix in high school emerged while he pursued Gabby Windey on The Bachelor.
While Erich wrote an apology on Instagram, Reality Steve points out some important differences between his and Greer’s statements. “I think Greer used word ‘racist’ at least 4 or 5 times in her apology while speaking in a public forum at the time of this taping. Probably wasn’t easy,” the spoiler king wrote. “Erich released a statement on IG and never used the word racist once. I’d say two vastly different apologies.”
The Bachelor Season 27 airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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