Miss North Carolina stripped of crown over racism and homophobia allegations

Miss North Carolina has lost her title after old social media posts featuring a racial slur, attributed to the model, surfaced online.

Twenty-seven-year-old Brittany Boltinhouse won the pageant last month and was scheduled to represent her state at the national beauty pageant on August 27. However, organizers revoked her title, and the crown and right to participate now pass to the runner-up, Myla Hadley.

Blaize Productions, the executive producer and official license holder of the Miss USA pageant in North Carolina, stated that the decision to strip her of the title "was not made lightly."

"This followed a thorough review of recently surfaced information and was based on the totality of circumstances, as well as our responsibility to uphold the reputation of the Miss North Carolina USA title and the values of our organization," a company representative added on Instagram.

Organizers did not specify what "surfaced information" they were referring to. Nevertheless, screenshots of posts from 2017 and 2019 from an account believed to belong to Boltinhouse circulated on X, featuring a banned racial slur (the N-word).

The production company thanked Boltinhouse for her "time, dedication, and commitment" and wished her "all the best in the future."

Miss USA Chairman Thom Brodeur also commented on the situation in a lengthy statement on Instagram, emphasizing that the organization has "zero tolerance for racism, homophobia, transphobia, and language that strips any human being of their dignity."

"A title is not just a trinket. It is a position of trust that our organization entrusts to a woman who agrees to carry high standards in public," he added. "When those standards are breached, the title cannot be retained as if nothing happened."

According to him, the decision was not made because of a "single incident," but based on a "pattern of behavior over a long period of time."

He announced that Boltinhouse would soon release a statement, noting that he had already reviewed it and that it includes "an admission of guilt, accountability, and an apology."