Normani spoke out for the first time about her former Fifth Harmony groupmate Camila Cabello’s past racist tweets and Tumblr posts.
“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,” the “Motivation” singer, 23, said in a statement to Rolling Stone on Friday, February 28.
“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 continued. “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.”
Normani concluded, “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.”
Cabello’s racist posts have resurfaced several times through the years, most recently in late 2019. Screenshots of old social media uploads showed her using the N-word, calling her groupmate Dinah Jane “ghetto fabulous” and claiming to be a “gangster hood thug rat.”
The “Havana” singer, 22, issued a public apology on her Instagram Stories in December 2019, writing, “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 the true meaning behind this horrible and hurtful language, I was deeply embarrassed i ever used it.”
Cabello explained to her fans that she has “grown and learned and [is] conscious and aware of the history and the pain” that her words carry. “I can’t say enough how deeply sorry and ashamed I feel, and I apologize again from the bottom of my heart,” she added.
The following month, the “Señorita” songstress became emotional at the 2020 Grammy Awards while singing “First Man” to her father, Alejandro.
Cabello quit Fifth Harmony in December 2016. The girl group, which also consisted of Lauren Jauregui and Ally Brooke, said in an icy statement at the time that they were “informed via [Cabello’s] representatives,” which she later denied. Fifth Harmony announced a hiatus in 2018 to pursue solo careers.
Us Weekly has reached out to Cabello’s rep for comment.
