A four-year-old video has resurfaced in which American Idol contestant Caleb Kennedy, now 16, sits next to a friend that wears a white hood many are calling reminiscent of KKK hoods, forcing Kennedy to withdraw after backlash calling the South Carolinian racist has spread, the Daily Mail reports.
Kennedy was just 12 in the three-second video, and according to his mother, he and his friend had just watched the horror movie The Strangers, in which one of the characters sports a similar head covering.
Kennedy released a statement to his Instagram Wednesday apologizing to his fans, saying that in addition to withdrawing he would be stepping away from social media for some time.
"Hey y'all, this is gonna be a bit of a surprise, but I am no longer gonna be on American Idol. There was a video that surfaced on the internet and it displayed actions that were not meant to be taken in that way," Kennedy said. "I was younger and did not thing about the actions, but that's not an excuse. I wanna say sorry to all my fans and everyone who I have let down."
"I'll be taking a little time off social media to better myself, but saying that, I know this has hurt and disappointed a lot of people and made people lose respect for me. I'm so sorry! I pray that I can one day regain your trust in who I am and have your respect!" Kennedy continues. "Thank you for supporting me."
Kennedy's mother Anita Guy told the Herald Journal that he "doesn't have a racist bone in his body."
"I hate this has happened and how Caleb is being portrayed by people online," Guy said. "This video was taken after Caleb had watched the movie 'The Strangers: Prey at Night' and they were imitating those characters. It had nothing to do with the Ku Klux Klan, but I know that's how it looks. Caleb doesn't have a racist bone in his body. He loves everyone and has friends of all races."
While many cheered Kennedy leaving the show, in a sign that the tide of cancel culture may be turning, backlash against his departure from the show was quick and fierce.
This is insane. He was 12, and it may not have been Klan-related at all. #CalebKennedy is a talented young man who seems deserving of grace, a vanishing commodity in this grievance-driven world. Shame on #AmericanIdol for kicking him to the curb. https://t.co/xLRoxdLbGr
— Mark Davis (@MarkDavis) May 13, 2021
@calebkennedy I hate that there are jealous people out there that would ruin your career over a child's mistake.
— Donna Shehan Gibson (@gibson9070) May 12, 2021
Please keep your head up and keep going forward. God forgives but humans don't always. Stay with God, he will always help you get through everything. God Bless you!
The kid is 16. Let's go back in time and pull up all the stupid crap any of you all have done as a minor. Caleb will be back.
— Southern Karen? (@TennOutlander) May 13, 2021
Caleb was the one sitting next to the hooded one. Who was under the hood? Shouldn't that be the person who is taking the punishment, not the innocent kid sitting there.
— President Elect PeppermintPatties (@noneofyourbyz) May 13, 2021
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