'Bachelorette' star Rachel Lindsay speaks out on Hannah Brown's use of racial slur

Former "Bachelorette" stars Rachel Lindsay (season 13), left, and Hannah Brown (season 15) are pictured in a composite image. Credit: Composite: Getty Images for Tyler Perry Studios / Paras Griffin, left; Getty Images / Jon Kopaloff
Rachel Lindsay, the sole African American star of ABC's "The Bachelorette," is criticizing fellow former star Hannah Brown for using a highly charged racial epithet and then issuing an apology that downplayed the extent of the offense.
"I didn't see it, but I woke up to a bunch of messages today basically telling me what happened," Lindsay, a 35-year-old Miami attorney, said on Instagram TV Sunday of Brown's since-deleted Instagram Live post a day earlier, saved by TMZ.com and other sites. In it, Alabama native Brown, 25, attempts to sing rapper DaBaby's "Rockstar" and uses the N-word. Someone off-screen notes this, and Brown, smiling, says, "I did? I'm so sorry.” Moments later, she repeats her apology with a nervous chuckle.
Brown later wrote on her Instagram Stories, where posts disappear after 24 hours, "I owe you all a major apology. There is no excuse and I will not justify what I said. I have read your messages and seen the hurt I have caused. I own it all. I am terribly sorry and know that whether in public or private, this language is unacceptable. I promise to do better."
In her video response, Lindsay referenced a Bible verse that advises speaking to the person who offended you. "I thought, 'Y'know what, let me just speak to the person directly and let them know how I'm feeling. … Let me challenge this person to use their platform, because last night it was used in a different way, so let me challenge them to use it in a better way.' "
When Brown posted a text apology rather than one on video to match the original platform, Lindsay became "personally hurt and offended …. It's easy to hide behind words, but when you're bold enough to say the [racial slur] on camera … then you need to be bold enough to use your face on camera and apologize in the same way that you said the word. I'm not discrediting the apology — I'm just saying we can't give people a pass for this."
After explaining why the word was adopted by the black community as refutation of its historical usage, Lindsay said of others using the word, "I don't care if you're singing along to it in a song. … It is not an excuse for you to now take the word when it has so much hate and history behind it and say it … and empower other people to feel comfortable enough to say the word. … Nonblack people should not feel OK saying that word. … [Y]ou wouldn't say it in front of your black friend. … Maybe you shouldn't sing along with it to a song."
In an Instagram Stories follow-up after receiving comments, Lindsay asked in frustration, "Why are you fighting so hard to use this word? Why is it so important for you to want to say this word?"
Lindsay starred in 2017's season 13 of "The Bachelorette." Brown starred in last year's season 15 of the reality competition show.
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