Greer Blitzer took the hot seat on the Women Tell All to talk about a topic that has set the internet ablaze over the past few months.
Greer, the 24-year-old sales rep on this season of The Bachelor, was accused of previously defending blackface when racist comments of hers resurfaced right after the premiere of the season.
A Reddit group had released a group of since-deleted tweets of Greer’s from when she was in high school, showing her defending a friend who had done blackface at an off-campus party in 2016.
While Greer took to social media to apologize shortly after, it was unclear whether or not she would address the situation in a more public forum.
However, during Tuesday night’s Women Tell All segment, host Jesse Palmer made it very clear that the franchise was not going to remain silent on the subject.
“As a franchise, we’ve done a very poor job in the past addressing serious topics head-on,” Jesse remarked. “And we’re not going to miss that opportunity here tonight.”
“I don’t want to sweep it under the rug,” Greer agreed, continuing to acknowledge the action she has taken since the comments resurfaced back in January.
The Bachelor contestant Greer Blitzer owns up to defending blackface
Greer took full accountability for the situation, formerly admitting her actions to be racist.
“What I failed to mention in my apology is what happened was racist,” she said. “It’s not about the intent, it’s about the impact and this acquaintance of mine that I knew performing blackface was racist. Me defending it was racist. My ignorance was racist and I’m just so ashamed. I’m just deeply sorry that I hurt the Black community.”
It was then revealed that Greer had met with Dr. Kira Banks, the co-founder of the Institute for Healing Justice and Equity co-founder, to discuss her previous actions in full.
Dr. Kira Banks was also present at Tuesday’s Women Tell All.
“She brought to my attention that it’s so important to be open-minded. It’s so important to question things and ask and not just do without thinking,” Greer continued.
Greer also said that she did her own research on the subject, which included looking up lectures to “dive deep” into history and realize why what she did was so wrong.
The former contestant ended her time in the hot seat by vowing to “do better” in the future.
Details on Greer’s resurfaced comments
While Greer may have been Zach’s first impression rose winner, fans did not seem to have quite the same impression when the news of her racist comments was leaked in real-time.
The comments from Greer were shared on Twitter after one of her friends painted her face black at an off-campus party in Houston, Texas. The girl also wore a Tupac shirt and claimed that she was dressed as a “shadow,” later claiming to not even know what blackface was and that her outfit was “misinterpreted.”
Although other students were offended by the situation, Greer made comments such as, “The students involved didn’t even know what blackface was so my point exactly. It wasn’t an intentional racist act.”
The since-deleted tweets caused a huge stir in bachelor nation, as many similar situations have occurred with other franchise members in just the past few years.
However, Greer took to Instagram to apologize for what she said at the time and let her followers know that she had changed since the incident happened seven years ago.
“I am deeply sorry to those I have hurt, especially those within the Black community, not because these screenshots have resurfaced, but because I ever shared those harmful opinions at all. Time and age do not excuse my actions, but this is not a reflection of who I am today,” she wrote.
The Bachelor airs on Mondays at 8/7c on ABC.