Brittany Boltinhouse, 27, was stripped of her title on Wednesday following a “thorough review” of one of her social media accounts.
Miss North Carolina USA has lost her crown after alleged reports of “racist” social media posts. Brittany Boltinhouse, 27, was stripped of her title on Wednesday following a “thorough review” of one of her social media accounts, in which she allegedly used the “n-word” several times under an alias, the NCBeat reported. It is not yet known what exactly Boltinhouse said in the posts.
Boltinhouse, who was crowned just over a month ago, apologized for her alleged rhetoric. But the apology wasn’t good enough for the organization.
“This decision was not made lightly,” Bosses at A-Blaize Productions said in a statement. “It followed a thorough review of recently surfaced information and was based on the totality of the circumstances and our responsibility to preserve the integrity of the Miss North Carolina USA title and the values of our organization.”
“As an organization entrusted with selecting and preparing women to represent our states on the national stage, we must uphold the standards and values that our titleholders agree to embrace when accepting the honor of wearing the crown,” the company said.
The Miss USA organization did not disclose the contents of Boltinhouse’s alleged racist posts. However, they were reportedly made in 2017 and 2019 under the username Sosa the Stallion, according to the paper.
Thom Brodeur, president and CEO of Miss USA, said the brand “does not tolerate racism, homophobia, transphobia, nor language that strips any person of their dignity – whoever they are.”
“That is not a policy written for a press release,” said Brodeur in a statement. “It is the floor of what it means to represent this brand. A title here isn’t a trinket. It is a position of trust, extended by an organization and accepted by a woman who agrees to carry a standard in public. When the standard is broken, the title cannot continue as though nothing happened. What was brought to us was not a single moment. It reflected conduct over an extended period of time. That is why this outcome was reached, and I stand behind it without qualification.”
Boltinhouse, a Honduran-Mexican model, goes by the name “Sosa” on social media. After becoming the first Honduran model to win the North Carolina beauty pageant, she wrote on Instagram: “I carry this crown with immense pride. Representation matters, and I hope every little girl who has ever wondered if she belongs can see that she does…This crown is bigger than me. It’s for the people who have been underestimated.”
Boltinhouse was ready to participate in the annual Miss USA competition in Miami, Florida, on August 24. Myla Hadley, who finished the competition as first runner-up, has since replaced Boltinhouse.