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Orgo-Life the new way to the future Advertising by AdpathwayCierra Ortega's Parents Speak Out After Her Exit From 'Love Island'
Cierra Ortega has exited the villa.
Love Island USA announced during the show’s July 6 episode that the 25-year-old had left the villa due to a “personal situation,” leaving the other half of her former couple, Nic Vansteenberghe, single.
Cierra’s exit comes after multiple posts, which E! News has not authenticated, emerged online in which she used a racial slur for Asian people. The posts—and subsequent images of alleged DMs in which she claimed to have used the word in an inoffensive context—caused a swift online backlash, with many fans calling for producers to remove Cierra much like Islander Yulissa Escobar was earlier this season.
E! News has reached out to Love Island USA and Cierra for comment but has not yet heard back.
While Cierra has yet to address the controversy, her parents shared a message encouraging people to treat their daughter with compassion, calling this “one of the most painful weeks” of their lives.
“We're not here to justify or ignore what's surfaced,” they wrote in a message shared to Cierra’s Instagram Story July 6. “We understand why people are upset, and we know accountability matters. But what's happening online right now has gone far beyond that."
They continued, "The threats. The cruel messages. The attacks on her family, her friends, even her supporters, it's heartbreaking. It's uncalled for. And no one deserves that kind of hate, no matter what mistake they've made.”
And while they noted Cierra was not home yet and hadn’t had the chance to address the posts, they added they “believe she'll face this with honesty, growth, and grace.”
Ben Symons/Peacock via Getty Images
“While she'll always be our little girl, she's also a woman, one who will take responsibility in her own time and her own voice,” the statement concluded. “Until then, we're simply asking for compassion. For patience. For basic human decency. Not just for her, but for everyone caught in the middle of this.”
Following the episode, Cierra’s fellow season seven Islander Belle-A Walker spoke out.
“As a proud Asian American woman, I'm deeply appreciative of the Love Island USA producers for taking a stand and making it clear that racism of any kind is not tolerated,” she wrote on her Instagram Story. “Asian hate is oftentimes overlooked and dismissed. But being a first-generation American, I have personally witnessed and experienced how real and hurtful comments like these are. It is my hope that this situation can help shed light on how big of an issue anti-Asian hate actually is.”
Ben Symons/Peacock
And while Belle-A noted that she personally had made the decision to unfollow Cierra on social media, she added, “I do not condone bigotry or racism of any kind. But I also don't condone hate either. Please think twice before leaving unkind comments to or about this person.”
For more on the cast of Love Island USA season seven, keep reading.
Peacock
Bryan Arenales
Boston, Massachusetts
Peacock
Elan Bibas
Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
Peacock
Courtney "CoCo" Watson
Los Angeles, Calfornia
Peacock
Clarke Carraway
Columbia, South Carolina
Peacock
Chris Seeley
Fresno, California
Peacock
Zak Srakaew
Roi Et, Thailand
Peacock
Zac Woodworth
Portland, Utah
Peacock
JD Dodard
Dallas, Texas
Peacock
Jaden Duggar
Los Angeles, California
Peacock
Gracyn Blackmore
Bristol, Virginia
Peacock
Savanna "Vanna" Einerson
Salt Lake City, Utah
Peacock/NBCUniversal
Andreina Santos
Peacock/NBCUniversal
Thomas John "TJ" Thomas
Peacock
Belle-A Walker
Honolulu, Hawaii
Peacock
Austin Shepard
Northville, Michigan
Peacock
Ace Greene
Los Angeles, California
Peacock
Chelley Bissainthe
Orlando, Florida
Peacock
Huda Mustafa
Raleigh, North Carolina
Peacock
Nicolas Vansteenberghe
Jacksonville, Florida
Peacock
Jeremiah Brown
Los Angeles, California
Peacock
Olandria Carthen
Decatur, Alabama
Peacock
Yulissa Escobar
Miami, Florida
Peacock
Taylor Williams
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Peacock
Cierra Ortega
Peacock
Charlie Georgiou
Voted Out
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