‘Bachelorette’ Rachel Lindsay Blasts Hannah Brown’s Apology After She Uses the N-Word

Attorney Rachel Lindsay, who participated in The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, was not happy with how Hannah Brown chose to apologize for using the N-word during an Instagram Live video. On Saturday night, Brown used the racial slur while singing to DaBaby’s hit “Rockstar” and later issued a “major apology.” Lindsay said she reached out to Brown personally and asked her to use her platform in a “better way.”

During an Instagram Live session, Lindsay said she first thought to herself that Brown may have made a mistake, so she reached out to Brown. Then she saw Brown’s brief apology statement Sunday and felt Brown took the easy way out. “It’s easy to make a statement. It’s easy to hide behind words, but when you’re bold enough to say the N-word on camera, on your platform… then you need be bold enough to use your face on camera and apologize in the same way you said the word,” Lindsay said, reports Entertainment Tonight.

Lindsay, the first African-American Bachelorette lead, said she was “personally hurt and offended” that she gave Brown suggestions on how to apologize, but “it wasn’t done” at all. “We can’t give people a pass for this. We have to hold people accountable for what they’re doing,” Lindsay later said. “You should feel disgusted when you say that word. You should feel uncomfortable.”

Lindsay explained that the N-word has “so much weight and history behind it” and called on people to educate themselves if they do not understand. “That word was used to make black people feel less than… and every time you use that word and you’re not black, you give that word power, and that is why it is wrong,” she said. “Non-black people should not feel OK about saying the word n—. It’s wrong.”

At the very end, Lindsay said she was sad to touch on the issue at all, but she felt it necessary to discuss it. “I’m saddened that I had to do that today. It never was my intention,” she said. “I just want to encourage everyone to be better, to do better.”

Lindsay was not the only member of Bachelor Nation to speak out against Brown using the slur. Bekah Martinez was shocked to see people defending Brown, especially since Brown did not sing the F-word in “Rockstar.” Former Bachelor Nick Viall also weighed in, saying it was “deeply disappointing to see” and there “is no excuse.”

Brown used the N-word while singing DaBaby’s song in an Instagram Live video with fans on Saturday night. She apologized while laughing when fans noticed her using the slur live, and later wrote an apology Sunday. “There is no excuse and I will not justify what I said,” she wrote. “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.”