Normani Says It Took Camila Cabello Years To Take Responsibility For Old Racist Posts: It Was Devastating

Normani, Camila Cabello

Normani Says It Took Camila Cabello Years To Take Responsibility For Old Racist Posts: It Was Devastating

Normani has broken her silence after racist comments from her ex Fifth Harmony bandmate Camila Cabello went viral last year. 

It was previously reported that screenshots of Camilla Cabello using racist phrases and posting racist GIFs from her Tumblr account were shared on an anonymous Twitter profile. Her posts date back to 2012 and 2013 when she was around 14-years-old.  She later issued an apology in December, shortly after the posts made headlines.

She wrote on her Instagram story,

“When I was younger, I used language that I’m deeply ashamed of and will regret forever. I was uneducated and ignorant and once I became aware of the history and the weight and true meaning behind this horrible and hurtful language, I was deeply embarrassed i ever used it. I apologized then and I apologize again now. I would never intentionally hurt anyone and I regret it from the bottom of my heart.”

“As much as I wish I could, I can’t go back in time and change things I said in the past. But once you know better, you do better and that’s all I can do.”

“I’m 22 now, I’m an adult and I’ve grown and learned and am conscious and aware of the history and the pain it carries in a way I wasn’t before. Those mistakes don’t represent the person I am or a person I’ve ever been. I only stand and have ever stood for love and inclusivity, and my heart has never, even then, had any ounce of hate or divisiveness.”

“The truth is I was embarrassingly ignorant and unaware. I use my platform to speak out about injustice and inequality and I’ll continue doing that. I can’t say enough how deeply sorry and ashamed I feel, and I apologize again from the bottom of my heart.”

Now, her former groupmate Normani has shared her thoughts. She said in an email to Rolling Stone, 

“I want to be very clear about what I’m going to say on this uncomfortable subject and figured it would be best to write out my thoughts to avoid being misconstrued, as I have been in the past. I struggled with talking about this because I didn’t want it to be a part of my narrative, but I am a black woman, who is a part of an entire generation that has a similar story.”

She added that while she’s subject to racism daily, it hurt her that it came from someone she was close with. She also called out Camila Cabello and said it took her quite a while to own up to the old posts, even after they went viral.

“I face senseless attacks daily, as does the rest of my community. This represents a day in the life for us. I have been tolerating discrimination far before I could even comprehend what exactly was happening. Direct and subliminal hatred has been geared towards me for many years solely because of the color of my skin. It would be dishonest if I said that this particular scenario didn’t hurt me. It was devastating that this came from a place that was supposed to be a safe haven and a sisterhood, because I knew that if the tables were turned I would defend each of them in a single heartbeat. It took days for her to acknowledge what I was dealing with online and then years for her to take responsibility for the offensive tweets that recently resurfaced. Whether or not it was her intention, this made me feel like I was second to the relationship that she had with her fans.”

She ended with,

“I don’t want to say that this situation leaves me hopeless because I believe that everyone deserves the opportunity for personal growth. I really hope that an important lesson was learned in this. I hope there is genuine understanding about why this was absolutely unacceptable. I have spoken what is in my heart and pray this is transparent enough that I never have to speak on it again. To my brown men and women, we are like no other. Our power lies within our culture. We are descendants of an endless line of strong and resilient kings and queens. We have been and will continue to win in all that we do simply because of who we are. We deserve to be celebrated, I deserve to be celebrated and I’m just getting started.”

She also shared a cryptic quote about racism on her Instagram story.