Heidi Klum tells Page Six that she received racial backlash after she seemed to dismiss Gabrielle Union’s claims that she suffered under a toxic work environment while serving as a judge on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.”
In November, reports came out that Union had been let go from the position after she lodged complaints of racism and inappropriate workplace behavior on set, which went unaddressed.
At a Television Critics Association event in January, Klum — who was a judge on the show for six seasons — said, “I’ve only had an amazing experience [on the show]. I can’t speak for Gabrielle. I didn’t experience the same thing. To me, everyone treats you with the utmost respect.”
But on Wednesday at the amfAR gala at Cipriani Wall Street, Klum told us, “A lot of people got mad at me. I was called, for example, ‘a white woman.’” She added, “I think it is important for everyone to speak their truth. I think that when there is a story, it should be told. I had a different story.”
Klum said, “I can only speak to what I saw — it has nothing to do with what color I am. I am a human so I just looked at what I saw.”