Former ‘Bachelor’ Star Leah Block Apologizes For Racist Tweet About ‘Bachelorette’ Rachel Lindsay

You know what they say: you can delete a tweet, but screenshots are forever. That’s a lesson former “Bachelor” star Leah Block learned the hard way early this week. The reality star was live tweeting “The Bachelorette” when she sent a tweet she’ll regret for some time to come.

Leah’s apologized for her post, which compared Rachel Lindsay’s season of the ABC dating competition to VH1’s “Love And Hip Hop,” in a lengthy Facebook post titled, “Starting Now.” In it, she owned up to her “ignorance,” writing that her tweet made light of “the failure of representation of minorities in reality TV.” Leah called her actions “passive and careless,” vowing to be better moving forward.

“It is vitally important to prioritize these experiences and help destroy the oppressive forces that threaten minority communities. My tweet did neither of those things and I see that as a personal failure. In my initial Twitter responses to concerned Bachelor Nation fans, I was defensive,” she explained. “The attacks directed at me felt to be responses to the epidemic of injustice we have toward individuals of marginalized identities — especially the black community. I accept responsibility for my ignorance and as I move forward I will engage in these issues...”

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Leah faced a ton of backlash from “Bachelorette” fans for her comment. The tweet garnered so much attention, in fact, that Rachel herself eventually got involved. She responded to Leah’s tweet, using the hashtag “#ihavetimetoday.”

“Let me know if she wants to meet Lee [Garrett]...they sound like they would have a lot in common,” the “Bachelorette” star tweeted.

The controversy started after a particularly contentious episode of “The Bachelorette,” in which race took center stage. Season 13 troublemaker Lee, whose questionable views were made public ahead of the show’s premiere, continued to bump heads with his co-stars. Dean Unglert, a fellow “Bachelorette” hopeful, was among the first to call Lee’s issues what they were — racism.

As various feuds broke out between Lee and others in the house, Dean pointed out that the “Bachelorette” villain was only having problems with people “he’s not used to seeing.” Lee repeatedly called black co-stars aggresive and continued to pick fights with them. When speaking with Rachel, he maintained his innocence in the drama in the hopes of making others look bad and having them sent home.

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Bachelor Nation wasn’t at all surprised by accusations of racism after seeing Lee’s Twitter account, now private. The “Bachelorette” star’s page was littered with tweets praising Donald Trump, labeling the Black Lives Matter movement a terrorist organization and denouncing feminism. Fans raised questions with executives about their decision to allow Lee on the show despite his divisive views, to which they received a response.

Chris Harrison, who hosts “The Bachelorette,” released a response on social media. He claimed he’d seen Lee’s tweets after the show was already in production. He called the “Bachelorette” contestant’s views “Very unfortunate.”

Lee remains as a cast member on “The Bachelorette.” He’s not believed to be one of Rachel’s finalists, however.