Former Miss North Carolina Brittany Boltinhouse is pushing back after pageant officials removed her from the role amid controversy over alleged racist social media posts.
Boltinhouse, 27, was crowned last month and had been set to represent the state at the national pageant on August 27. Soon after her win, however, screenshots from an X account believed to belong to her began circulating online, including one post that allegedly contained a racial slur.
A Blaize Productions, the executive producer and state license holder for the official Miss USA pageants in North Carolina, later rescinded her title and named runner-up Myla Hadley as the new titleholder, pointing to “recently surfaced information” in its decision.
But Boltinhouse now argues the move was not truly about the disputed posts. Instead, she claims she was removed because of her personal and political views.
Speaking in a recent interview with the Carolina Journal, Boltinhouse told editor-in-chief Donna King that she believes pageant leaders targeted her over her “belief system as a conservative Christian woman.”
Boltinhouse said she is an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the Mormon church, and framed her faith as central to her public identity.
She described herself as a “proud conservative” and a “God-fearing” woman, adding, “I also love this country. That’s something I want to make clear.” Boltinhouse also said she believes in “a nation under God.”
Pressed about the alleged racist posts, Boltinhouse did not directly verify whether they came from her account. She instead responded that “every teenager has made a mistake.”
Brittany Boltinhouse, 27, was stripped of her title after alleged racist posts resurfaced last month
She recently spoke out about the allegations in an interview, claiming that she believes her title was revoked due to her ‘belief system as a conservative Christian woman’
Boltinhouse began competing last year and won several titles before posts circulated online appearing to come from her social media account that used a racial slur
‘Every person has made a mistake. But I’m not really here to talk about that. I’m here to talk about the woman I am today.’
She continued that despite what happened ‘decades ago,’ Boltinhouse believes she is a ‘hardworking woman’ who won her titles fair and square.
The pageant queen cited her Miss Congeniality award, which is given to a contestant based on their character.
‘I’m also the first married woman who had that title, and that’s something that I’m proud of,’ she continued.
‘I won’t be judged for my past and I won’t be judged at all because I am the woman I am today.’
Boltinhouse reflected on her short-lived pageant career, having just started competing last year.
She explained that her experience with Miss USA went from a ‘dream to a nightmare’ after the allegations surfaced.
Despite the media firestorm, Boltinhouse said she was glad the controversy happened to her, boasting that she could handle the scrutiny and had made peace with her unwanted departure from pageantry.
A Blaize Productions said in the announcement that the decision to revoke her title ‘was not made lightly’
Boltinhouse touted herself as a ‘proud conservative’ and ‘God-fearing’ woman, adding, ‘I also love this country’ in her first remarks since the controversy
When discussing the pageant executives who stripped her of her title, Boltinhouse said, ‘I show a lot of grace and a lot of love to those people because I know they make mistakes too.
‘I understand that they might not have the wisdom and knowledge that I do, but I forgive them,’ she boasted.
Boltinhouse refused to elaborate on the events that transpired before her title was stripped, citing a confidentiality clause, but said that the narrative against her was untrue.
Thom Brodeur, the chairman of Miss USA, addressed the matter in a lengthy Instagram message, explaining that the organization ‘does not tolerate racism, homophobia, transphobia nor language that strips any person of their dignity.’
‘A title here isn’t a trinket. It is a position of trust, extended by an organization and accepted by a woman who agrees to carry a standard in public,’ he added.
‘When that standard is broken, the title cannot continue as though nothing happened.’
He said that the decision didn’t come down to a ‘single moment,’ but rather ‘conduct over an extended period of time.’
‘State titleholders are recruited, vetted and approved for competition at the state level. We acted as soon as this reached us.’
Boltinhouse said that she was proud to be the first married woman to receive the Miss Congeniality award
Thom Brodeur, the chairman of Miss USA, addressed the matter in a lengthy Instagram message, explaining that the organization ‘does not tolerate racism, homophobia, transphobia nor language that strips any person of their dignity’
A family member of Boltinhouse’s previously told the Daily Mail that ‘it’s important to put her truth out and have the proper narrative out versus a narrative that is saving the face [of] an organization.’
‘As you can imagine, there’s a lot we would like to say but we are taking the time to be in prayer and unity and [will] respond in a manner [that] God calls us to.’
The Daily Mail has reached out to A Blaize Productions for comment on Boltinhouse’s interview.
