Paula Deen Fired: Celebrity Chef Loses Smithfield Pork Endorsement After Racial Slur Controversy
Paula Deen continues to slide down a slippery slope after admitting to using racial slurs in the past. The celebrity chef has been fired from the Food Network and QVC, and now major pork company Smithfield said in a statement to celebrity news site TMZ that they’re letting the Southern “Butter Queen” go too.
Until Monday, the 66-year-old had a line of hams with the pork products company called the Paula Deen Collection. Smithfield told the news site: “Smithfield condemns the use of offensive and discriminatory language and behavior of any kind. ... We are terminating our partnership with Paula Deen."
Then the company added, “Smithfield is determined to be an ethical food industry leader and it is important that our values and those of our spokespeople are properly aligned.”
Despite Deen’s profuse apologizes, she continues to lose endorsements after it was revealed last week she had used the racial epithet in the past. Her first apology came in the form of a video that was aimed at her fans and colleagues. “I wanna apologize to everybody for the wrong that I’ve done,” Deen told viewers. “I want to learn and grow from this.”
After the commotion over Deen’s use of the N-Word didn’t subside, she issued a second apology targeted at the public: “Inappropriate hurtful language is totally, totally unacceptable,” the chef said. “I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way, but I beg you, my children, my team, my fans, my partners, I beg for your forgiveness. Please forgive me for the mistakes that I have made.”
Though she’s professionally floundering, Deen’s fans continue to support her through what seems to be the roughest patch in her career. A Support Paula Deen Facebook page has more than 60,000 likes. Twitter on the other hand, which is known for bullying, hasn't been as supportive and instead has taken the opportunity to poke fun at the Southern belle.
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