MTV ‘severed ties’ with The Challenge contestant Dee Nguyen after she tweeted offensive remarks about the Black Lives Matter movement.
Dee Nguyen was one of the stars of MTV’s hit show The Challenge.
The Aussie competitor, who has also appeared on MTV’s Geordie Shore, was apart of the winning War of the Worlds team before she was recently dropped by the network.
She appeared alongside fellow co-stars Chris “CT” Tamburello, Jordan Wiseley, and Rogan O’Connor, whom she shared a romantic fling with.
She boasts a 100k following on Instagram.
Nguyen recently made a series of offensive comments about the Black Lives Matter movement on social media.
The Challenger, 27, took part in the Black Out Tuesday social media movement to demonstrate solidarity for the black community before taking back to Instagram to post provocative bikini pictures.
“READ THE F***ING ROOM. All you posted was a black square and went about your day and posting your lame a** thirst traps. Wake up!!! People are dying. Smh” one user angrily commented on her post.
The competitor, who is natively Vietnamese, replied “People die every f***ing day. [You] don’t know me or what I do.”
“I suggest [you] wake the f**k up and get off social media.”
Over the next few days, she took to Twitter to defend her support of the BLM movement, writing: ” IDK why some of [you] think I’m anti-BLM. I’ve been saying that since the day I lost my virginity.”
Her comments have since received a wave of backlash for their racist and insensitive nature.
As a result, MTV made the executive decision to ‘sever ties’ with the star to ‘stand with those raising their voices against injustice’.
“As a result of Dee Nguyen’s offensive comments on the Black Lives Matter movement, we have severed ties with her. Out of respect for our Challengers, we’ll air our season as planned. We strongly condemn systemic racism and stand with those raising their voices against injustice” MTV tweeted on Monday night.
“We stand united against racism and urge you to join us in taking action to end racism, discrimination, and systemic violence. Learn more about being an ally. Take action and text DEMANDS to 55156.”
Nguyen issued an apology on Sunday night as a result of the backlash.
“I am sorry for the insensitive tweet I posted earlier. I was being defensive and not speaking from my heart. But there’s no excuse,” she wrote.
After a fiery exchange between her and her castmates Bayleigh Danton and Christopher ‘Swaggy C’ Williams, she also apologized to the couple directly.
“I also want to extend an apology to Bayleigh and Swaggy- who are my cast mates and deserve my respect and compassion.”
Nguyen’s apology wasn’t enough for fans, including Danton and fellow castmate Tula “Big T” Fazakerley, who both issued their own responses on social media after her thoughtless remarks.
“THIS IS NOT HOW YOU SUPPORT BLM. I’m disgusted and disappointed. THIS IS NOT A TREND. THIS IS LIFE OR DEATH FOR US. Posting for clout about the death of black people? Shame on you @deenguyenMTV” Danton tweeted.
Fazakerley took to Instagram to express her ‘honest’ experience with the Challenger, and how Dee had made her feel as though she was trying to box her into a ‘stereotype’.
“She said she was ‘blacker’ than me because I didn’t know the name of a musician and because she hadn’t seen me fight and be aggressive,” Fazakerley posted to her Instagram story.
“The tweet is not funny. It is disrespectful, utterly degrading, and wholly insensitive.”
Nyugen issued a second apology on Monday night and said that she would be stepping away from social media to focus on mental wellbeing in the midst of the backlash.
”The last 24 hours have made me realized what is important and that is forgiveness. I would like to offer my sincerest apology to my colleagues whom I have hurt directly and indirectly due to my insensitive remarks” she penned.
“This is not a goodbye, it’s a I will see you again. To my fans thank you for believing in me and your support.”
The Challenge is currently MTV’s longest-running reality series with 35 seasons to date. The show pits contestants against each other in a series of athletic challenges leading to eliminations and prizewinners.
In a statement issued last week, the network voiced its support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
“Enough is enough. #BlackLivesMatter We recognize that changes need to be made on our platforms, at our company, and in the entertainment industry as a whole,” the statement read. “We’re committed to making progress and addressing systemic inequality.”
