Cierra Ortega Officially Apologized For Using Anti-Asian Slur. But Not Everyone Is Buying It.

Former Love Island USA contestant Cierra Ortega has officially responded to the controversy that led to her abrupt departure from the villa earlier this week. 

In an Instagram video posted late Wednesday night, the 25-year-old influencer addressed resurfaced posts in which she used an anti-Asian slur when describing the shape of her eyes when she smiles. 

“While I was in the villa, there were some posts that resurfaced from my past where I was very naively using an incredibly offensive and derogatory term,” she said in the video. “I want to first start by addressing not just anyone that I have hurt or deeply offended, but most importantly, the entire Asian community. I am deeply, truly, honestly so sorry. I had no idea that the word held as much pain as much harm, and came with the history that it did, or I never would have used it.”

To clarify the timeline, Cierra pointed to screenshots of a private conversation from January 27, 2024. In those messages, a follower confronted her about the term, and Cierra claims she immediately removed it from her post and vocabulary.

“I of course immediately deleted the post,” she said. “I was apologetic, and I educated not only myself on the true meaning and the history of the word, but also anyone around me who was accidentally holding space for this slur.”

Addressing the ongoing discourse online, she also denied claims that she continued to use the slur after being corrected. “There are other screenshots fueling this narrative that I sort of doubled down once people tried to correct me and was like, oh, like, I don't know, I'm still gonna use it. But that was not the case,” she said. “The truth is that in that moment, the lesson was learned, the word was removed, and it was a true learning moment for me.”

Still, the reaction to her apology has been anything but unanimous. While some viewers acknowledge her statement, others are skeptical, questioning the sincerity of the video due to its seemingly polished delivery, as well as the visual details: Cierra wears a sweatshirt that reads “Empath” and a jade necklace, a stone with strong cultural significance in many Asian communities. (One person even commented, “jade necklace + empathy sweater combo = CRAZY”). There’s also been confusion surrounding the authenticity of certain screenshots, particularly those that appear to show her minimizing the slur in early exchanges.