Paris Jackson has always been a staunch LGBTQ+ supporter, who regularly speaks out against labels and leverages her fame to help other members of the community.
"I will use my voice to speak for the voiceless, and fight for the rights that every one of us deserve. Every woman that walks this earth, every mother, every sister, every daughter and every lover. Every member of my fellow LGBTQ community, every immigrant, every animal and every plant…" she said in a speech at last year’s Fashion Los Angeles Daily Awards.
However, recently when a writer slammed the 20-year-old for appearing on the front cover of Singapore Harper’s Bazaar cover, her devotion to the LGBTQ+ cause began to be questioned by thousands of fans.
The author of the piece, Jamie Tabberer, called into question Paris' loyalties and accused the model of hypocrisy. This was due to the fact that she had posted on the front cover of a magazine which is produced for a country where same-sex sex is illegal; in Singapore, gay sex is punishable with "up to two years in prison".
After Paris posted the cover to Instagram with no mention of the country's gay rights problems, Tabberer wrote: "Perhaps Paris does address the problematic nature of her magazine appearance; perhaps she uses it as an opportunity to draw attention to sexual inequality in Singapore and around the world," he wrote. "But even if she has, that’s immaterial. What matters the most is the missed opportunity of that Instagram post; of the sorely lacking caption."
Now, the daughter of passed singing legend Michael Jackson has defended herself, insisting that she had not been aware of Singapore's anti-gay laws when she uploaded the cover to her social media accounts.
"I didn’t know, i am sorry. i was grateful for the opportunity, but i’ll delete the post now," she tweeted shortly before deleting the Instagram post of the cover. "I don’t want to be hypocritical or hurt anyone, and my support for my fellow LGBTQ+ community comes first before my love for fashion and gratitude for this opportunity. again, i’m sorry. [sic]"
In addition, she argued that a member of the LGBT community being on the front of a magazine in a country with homophobic laws was a step forward, writing: "i would like to add though that someone that is openly apart of the community being on the cover in a country against the community, should be celebrated. isn’t that a step forward? again, i am deeply sorry. i didn’t mean to be hypocritical or hurt anyone. [sic]"
Furthermore, she later clarified that the shoot and interview she took part in was intended to run in several international editions of Harper’s Bazaar, tweeting, "the magazine is not just in singapore, it was supposed to go to several dif countries [sic]". She rounded her defence off by firing back at Tabberer, stating: "also that article is ridiculously mean."
The 20-year-old has never wanted to label her sexuality, claiming earlier this year when asked if she was bisexual: ‘That’s what you guys call it, so I guess, but who needs labels?’
She then added: "Everyone has known for years I came out when I was 14, WTF. How many times have I publicly referred to the community as ‘my fellow LGBTQ+’? Like, even on stage. I’ve been apart of the community for years. I even mentioned having crushes on girls when I was eight in a magazine before. I’ve been caught kissing girls in public."
Hopefully, fans will forgive Paris for her mistake and she can continue to use her fame to help out members of the LGBTQ+ community,
