Tituss Burgess has spoken out in support of his “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” co-star Ellie Kemper after she apologized for her involvement in a racist debutante ball.
Kemper went viral last week after images surfaced on social media indicating that the TV star had been crowned as the “Queen of Love and Beauty” at the 1999 Veiled Prophet Ball in Missouri.
The event is presided over by a “veiled prophet” wearing a Ku Klux Klan-like hood, hence the title, and came about more than 140 years ago in an effort to gather together the city’s white business elite to highlight their economic and racial power.
On Monday, Kemper posted a five-part apology on Instagram, explaining how, when she was 19 years old, she participated in an “unquestionably racist, sexist, and elitist past.”
“I was not aware of this history at the time, but ignorance is no excuse. I was old enough to have educated myself before getting involved,” she explained. “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 has dispensed unequal justice and unequal rewards.”
She said she apologizes “to the people I’ve disappointed, and I promise that moving forward I will listen, continue to educate myself, and use my privilege in support of the better society I think we’re capable of becoming.”
Burgess, who starred alongside Kemper in the aforementioned hit Netflix comedy series, reposted the apology with the caption: “I love my Ellie ❤️, Oh, & P.S. Next time, just ask me, I’ll tell ya what to do 🥰.”
Kemper commented on the post saying, “I love you Tituss.”