Ramona Singer is facing backlash after an explosive Vanity Fair report alleges she used the N-word while filming Season 13 of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of New York City.
Vanity Fair has been investigating the reality network and released their first article on the ongoing “reality reckoning” earlier this morning (October 30). In addition to Leah McSweeney, Bethenny Frankel, and Eboni K. Williams going public with their experience of working with the network, a large portion of the article focused on Ramona Singer and her alleged use of the racial slur.
According to Vanity Fair, executives at Bravo were made aware of Ramona’s “racial hostility” in 2020 and 2021 after she was the subject of complaints made within Shed Media, Warner Bros. Discovery, Bravo, and NBCUniversal. While these allegations were first made public after Eboni exited the Bravo series and the reunion was cancelled, this is the first time fans are hearing about the incidents in greater detail.
Racial slurs and discrimination
On November 6, 2020, Darian Edmondson, who is a Black, female producer, stayed behind at Ramona’s house after Eboni left (the two had just finished filming that controversial scene where Ramona states she does not want to talk about politics anymore.) According to Edmondson’s account, Ramona told Edmondson that her interaction with Eboni was reminiscent of “when Jewish colleagues used a ‘Catholic slur’ with her when she was a young woman and called her a ‘shiksa,’ a Yiddish term for a non-Jewish woman.”
Edmondson, who hadn’t heard the word before, told Ramona she didn’t know what she was referring to. “Oh, it’s literally like somebody calling you a n-gger,” she allegedly said in response. According to Ramona, she “never” said the N-word and Edmondson’s account is a “misrepresentation.”
At the time, Edmondson wrapped up the conversation with Ramona and did not address her comments. She later sent her husband a text about the situation, which VF reviewed, but she never filed any official complaints.
This, and other complaints—like Ramona suggesting the show didn’t need Black people—were found to be “inconclusive” by Warner Bros. Discovery, who investigated the claims.
Issues “downplayed”
Later, when the show was airing, Eboni requested a series of meetings with the network after she heard about what Ramona had allegedly been saying. During one call, Eboni claims that someone at NBC had “confirmed ” the company determined Ramona had used the N-word but that they subsequently proceeded to downplay the issue, suggesting she didn’t call Edmondson the slur, she just said the slur.
As previously reported on TVDeets.com, production and the network actually set up a “virtual education session” for the women prior to filming on RHONY Season 13 starting. Topics included “Black Women” (“How Black women are treated in larger society and the Black community”), “Microaggressions” (“What are they? How do you recognize them?”), “Lexicon” (“Appropriate vs. Harmful/Offensive language”), and “Missteps” (“What to do when you say something offensive? How do you move forward in that relationship?”). Williams, McSweeney, Morgan, Singer, and de Lesseps were on the call, “as well as an NBCUniversal communications executive, a Bravo publicist, and two representatives from a racial justice organization.”
Despite the issues with RHONY Season 13, Ramona Singer was asked to appear on RHUGT: RHONY Legacy which is set to debut on Peacock this December.
In regards to that decision, an insider reveals the claims were investigated and implies the issues have been dealt with: “As soon as Shed became aware of concerns related to conduct on the RHONY season 13 production, producers immediately reached out to the affected employees to make sure they were supported, and Shed hired an outside investigator to conduct a thorough and confidential investigation. Where issues were substantiated, appropriate corrective action was taken […] These measures were taken over two years before the casting of UGT: St. Barth’s [Legacy].”
Fan backlash
Some fans don’t seem to be taking the revelations in the article well with many calling out why Bravo has continued to work with Ramona despite the allegations.
“So y’all just gonna keep giving her a pass when she’s obviously racist?” asked one viewer.
“I don’t understand why so many people are gagging to have her back on TV. She’s vile and nasty, and always has been,” posted another RHONY viewer. “Bad seed truly!”
“Eboni was right the whole time,” posted another.
Bravo has not yet commented publicly on the Vanity Fair article.
