Normani Kordei Of Fifth Harmony Departs Twitter Due To Racist Cyber-Bullying: ‘I Can’t Subject Myself Any Longer To The Hate’
Like Ghostbusters star Leslie Jones before her, singer Normani Kordei of Fifth Harmony fame has departed Twitter after she says she was bombarded with racist messages and memes.
As mentioned by E! Online, the 20-year-old “Work From Home” songstress spoke of the actions that led to her farewell via a note attached to a post from Saturday night (August 6).
“Over the past four years of being in the public eye, I’ve learned to grow a thick skin to critics and those who may not like me,” Kordei says. “I’ve never been one to deny anyone of their opinions, but over the course of this last week and especially over the last 48 hours, I’ve not just been cyber-bullied, I’ve been racially cyber-bullied with tweets and pictures so horrific and racially charged that I can’t subject myself any longer to the hate.”
Normani’s choice to leave the site closely mirrors Jones’ reasons for her short Twitter sabbatical, which was noted here on the Inquisitr in mid-July. In that instance, following a hateful charge that was led by Breitbart journalist, Milo Yiannopolis, Leslie departed the site for about a week.
“What’s scary about the whole thing is [that] the insults didn’t hurt me,” Jones explained to talk show host Seth Meyers on July 21. “Unfortunately, I’m used to the insults. What scared me was the injustice of a gang of people jumping against you for such a sick cause. Everybody has an opinion, and it all comes at you at one time. They really believe in what they believe in, and it’s so mean. It’s so gross and mean.”
After tye much-needed time off, Leslie returned to Twitter and found herself awash in a heartfelt sea of support from her fans, who created the hashtag, “#LoveForLeslieJ,” in her absence. Yiannopolis, meanwhile, was permanently banned from the site for being a repeated nuisance, according to Twitter higher-ups.
“I’m not the first black female celebrity to deal with this,” she expressed, “and I’m sure I won’t be the last. Hiding behind a computer [screen] and putting people down, especially [over] the color of their skin doesn’t make you cool. It makes you a coward!”
She also thanked Twitter for stepping in quickly to rectify to issue once, “they were alerted to the situation.”
Emulating Jones’ following, fans of Kordei created a sympathetic hashtag, “#WeLoveYouNormani,” to express support once news of her note became known. It quickly trended and continued to do so throughout Saturday night and early Sunday morning.
Even fellow celebrities, such as entertainer Zendaya Coleman, reached out to Kordei with words of comfort.
Stay strong baby girl, so much love for you????? https://t.co/N59jCEFSyW
— Zendaya (@Zendaya) August 7, 2016
The sad part is that it's so common, that type of racially charged hate as black woman in this industry, you deserve so much more sis.
— Zendaya (@Zendaya) August 7, 2016
Unfortunately, this was not the first harsh social media issue that Normani experienced in recent history. Following a radio interview where she had trouble saying something complimentary about fellow Fifth Harmony vocalist Camila Cabello, she once again found herself deluged with anger-laced comments from fans who felt that she was disrespecting Cabello. Just as with Saturday’s response to negativity, Normani wrote a strong letter to combat the falsehood of her relationship with Camila.
“It is a shame that after four years together as a group I have to address foolishness manufactured by those that have absolutely no idea what goes on,” she responded, as shared by the Inquisitr. “I have shown nothing but commitment for the success of Fifth Harmony even promoting on my days off but yet I always find myself as the target of unjust hate and slander. It’s just not right.”
Kordei and the rest of Fifth Harmony are currently on their 7/27 Tour to promote their second album, which was released in May. Their next stop will see them taking the stage at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, N.J. on August 7. Read Normani’s full statement below.
To my fans: pic.twitter.com/7yICp10G5Z
— Normani (@Normani) August 7, 2016
[Photo by Dimitrios Kambouri/Getty Images]
