Ellie Kemper has responded to backlash about her 1999 involvement in a St. Louis debutante ball with racist origins
“I unequivocally deplore, denounce, and reject white supremacy. At the same time, I acknowledge that because of my race and my privilege, I am the beneficiary of a system that dispensed unequal justice and unequal rewards,” she continued.
“There is very natural temptation, when you become the subject of internet criticism, to tell yourself that your detractors are getting it wrong. But at some point last week, I realized that a lot of the forces behind the criticism are forces that I’ve spent my life supporting and agreeing with,” Kemper’s statement read.
The Veiled Prophet Ball, which took place around Christmastime, was a “powerful symbol of that reassertion of control” that doubled down on the “static racial and economic power structure of the city,” Scott Beauchamp wrote forThe ball, during which a secret committee chose a man — whose identity was kept secret — as the Veiled Prophet, who in turn picked a Veiled Prophet queen, was one of several events organized by the group of elites.
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