Former NFL and XFL linebacker Kyle Queiro issued an apology to Jill Scott for seemingly questioning why the singer-songwriter is thought to be a sex symbol. On the night of Friday, July 10, the 25-year-old athlete asked in a now-deleted tweet: “People are attracted to JILL SCOTT!? And by no means is she ugly, but ya’ll really sexually aroused by her?”
Fans instantly jumped to the “Golden” singer’s defense, expressing that they believed Scott is attractive. “She’s actually f-cking beautiful,” someone said. Another person asked: Who is thisš¤”?” Other people accused the former Dallas Cowboys player of fat-shaming the actress. “Wow!! How TF dare he!!! Let me guess? He only date āexoticā skinny tra-ps?!šš¤”š.”
Shortly after he received backlash from fans, Queiro admitted in a now-deleted tweet that his message was “poorly worded and conveyed”. By the evening of Saturday, July 11, the New Jersey native shared an extensive apology on Twitter and implied that he did not intend to make anyone feel like their appearance was not good enough.
“First and foremost, I would like to to apologize to Miss Jill Scott,” he started. “The topic of your beauty should not have been shared over social media for public discourse. There’s truly no excuses or explanations to be made. My comments were distasteful and unbecoming of a Black man to speak negatively of a Black woman under any circumstance.”
“Second, I would like to apologize to all of those who were also offended by my post. I’m aware of the layers of hurt I peeled back with my words. I had no intention to make people feel less than, but that’s simply not good enough. Intention doesn’t equate to impact. I am aware of how much more important one’s impact is than their intention. Knowing this, I still offended a large number of people and for that I am deeply sorry.”
Queiro concluded his message by explaining that he would use his platform to promote “positivity and empowerment within our community” and then praised Scott for shedding light on the injustices in the nation.
The apology came after the Philadelphia native noticed she was a hot topic on Twitter and responded to his message by speaking out against racial injustice and crimes against Black women.
“Waitā¦Iām was trending again??? Ok then-JUSTICE for Breonna Taylor!!! Justice for Oluwatoyin Salau!!!! Justice for Sandra Bland!!!!! Loving ourselves and each other is respectful and uplifting; supportive. EYES ON THE PRIZE, LOVE VILLAGE, EYES ON THE PRIZE” she wrote in July 11 tweet.
