'The Bachelor' Season 25 Stars Condemn 'Defense of Racism' Following Chris Harrison Interview

The women of Matt James' season of The Bachelor are speaking out to denounce comments made by Chris Harrison Tuesday in an Extra interview with Rachel Lindsay, in which he defended Bachelor contestant Rachael Kirkconnell against allegations of racism and urged people to show her "grace." The majority of the contestants from the ongoing season shared a joint statement Thursday, saying they were "deeply disappointed" at the franchise's longtime host.

"We are the women of Bachelor Season 25. Twenty-five women who identify as BIPOC were cast on this historic season that was meant to represent change," their statement begins. "We are deeply disappointed and want to make it clear that we denounce any defense of racism. Any defense of racist behavior denies the lived and continued experiences of BIPOC individuals. These experiences are not to be exploited or tokenized." The message then turned to support Lindsay, the franchise's only Black Bachelorette, promising to stand with her and "advocate for change alongside her."

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Contestants who shared the post were: Abigail Heringer, Bri Springs, Chelsea Vaughn, Jessenia Cruz, Kit Keenan, Michelle Young, Pieper James, Serena Chew, Serena Pitt, Kaite Thurston, Brittany Galvin, Magi Tareke, Ryan Claytor, MJ Snyder, Lauren Maddox, Mari Pepin, Victoria Larson, Anna Redman, Kaili Anderson, Khaylah Epps, Sarah Trott, Alana Milne, Illeana Pennetto, Kristin Hopkins, Marylynn Sienna, Sydney Johnson, Alicia Holloway, Carolyn Vallejo, Casandra Suarez, Corrinne Jones, Emani Curl, Kimberly Courneya and Saneh St. Clare.

Allegations of racist behavior against Kirkconnell surfaced soon after she was announced as part of James' cast, with a woman on TikTok alleging she was bullied by the contestant in the past for dating Black men and others digging up what appear to be "likes" on racist photos from Kirkconnell. Last week, photos surfaced of Kirkconnell at an Old South plantation-themed party in 2018.

Harrison's defense of Kirkconnell resulted in fans and Bachelor Nation members calling for the host's firing in a petition that as of now has more than 30,600 signatures. He would apologize on Instagram Thursday, in part for causing harm by "wrongly speaking in a manner that perpetuates racism." He also offered an apology to Lindsay for not "listening to her better" during their discussion of racism. "I promise to do better," he concluded.

Kirkconnell also issued an apology on Thursday for her actions and reposted the letter from her castmates on her Instagram Story. "At one point, I didn't recognize how offensive and racist my actions were, but that doesn't excuse them," she wrote in part. "My age or when it happened does not excuse anything. They are not acceptable or okay in any sense. I was ignorant, but my ignorance was racist."