Ellie Kemper has apologised after she made headlines this month following the leak of a photo of her at a 1999 beauty pageant hosted by the Veiled Prophet Ball.
The ball which was founded in 1878 by white elites who “emphasized the existing power structure.”
According to a 2014 report from The Atlantic, they banned Black and Jewish people and the original 1878 “veiled prophet” wore a robe and a hood, which became the Ku Klux Klan uniform.
Now, Kemper is apologising for her participation in a 1999 pageant with a reported racist history.
“Hi guys, when I was 19 years old, I decided to participate in a debutante ball in my hometown,” said The Office actress. “The century-old organization that hosted the debutante ball had an unquestionably racist, sexist and elitist past. I was not aware of the history at the time, but ignorance is no excuse. I was old enough to have educated myself before getting involved.”
Ellie continued, “I acknowledge that because of my race and my privilege, I am the beneficiary of a system that has dispensed unequal justice and unequal rewards.”
“There is a very natural temptation when you become the subject of internet criticism, to tell yourself that your detractors are getting it all wrong,” Kemper continued. “But at some point last week, I realized that a lot of the forces behind the criticism are forces that I’ve spent my life supporting and agreeing with.”
“I try to live my life in accordance with these values,” she shared. “If my experience is an indication that organizations and institutions with pasts that fall short of these beliefs should be held to account, then I have to see this experience in a positive light.”
See her full post.
No comments:
Post a Comment