Love Island USA's Vasana Breaks Silence on Removal Over Racial Slur
Vasana Montgomery is issuing an apology.
The 25-year-old spoke out for the first time after she was removed from the Love Island USA season eight cast over her alleged use of the N-word in past videos.
"I want to address a couple videos from my teen years that have recently surfaced," Montgomery wrote on her Instagram Story June 3. "In those videos, I used a racial slur. There is no excuse for it, and I am deeply sorry."
The salon owner from Beaverton, Ore.—who was cut from the dating show ahead of the June 2 premiere—said that she was both "embarrassed and disappointed" by her words.
"I take full responsibility for what I said and understand why it has hurt and upset people," she continued. "Since then, I have grown a lot as a person and taken the time to educate myself, listen, learn, and better understand the impact that language can have."
Montgomery went on to apologize again for the offensive language.
"That growth does not erase my mistake, and I am not asking anyone to excuse it," she said. "I believe people should be held accountable for their actions, but I also believe in growth, learning, and becoming better. To anyone I hurt or disappointed, I am truly sorry."
The Peacock reality show did not address her absence during the June 2 premiere, instead introducing the five original women and five original men of the season: Beatriz Hatz, Trinity Tatum, Aniya Harvey, Kenzie Annis, Melanie Moreno, Bryce Dettloff, KC Chandler, Sean Reifel, Sincere Rhea and Zach Georgiou.
Along with those 10 islanders, Montgomery was originally announced May 28 as part of the cast along with Rio de Janeiro native Gabriel Vasconcelos. In the wake of Montgomery's exit, Vasconcelos wasn't part of the O.G. group, though he entered the villa in Fiji during the debut episode as the first bombshell, along with new contestant Kayda Bosse from New Hampshire.
Read on for a closer look at your season eight islanders...
eonline
