Love Island 2019 contestant Phoebe Thompson has claimed that she experienced racism from a co-star while appearing on the show.
In an Instagram Q&A on Sunday, the ex-Islander was asked if she went on Love Island to “promote herself”, before she unleashed on an unnamed contestant for “[fooling] the whole of Australia”.
“I find reality TV kinda triggering at the moment,” Phoebe, who is part-Jamaican, replied. “After seeing how a narrative is picked for certain people and then their whole edit on the show can completely mislead the viewers.”
“[Two] years later one [of] the girls on the show fooled the whole of Australia with a completely fake persona.”
Phoebe added: “She bullied others and made racial slurs and the producers did NOTHING!!”
While she is yet to name the contestant, the Love Island star hinted at outing the contestant in a podcast.
“I’m actually thinking about going on a podcast and just talking about it,” she wrote to her followers. “She’s made no effort to apologise to the people she hurt.”
Phoebe then claimed her fellow Islander has “gone out of her way to try and hide her racist agenda even further on socials.”
Other Love Island Australia 2019 Contestants Have Discussed Facing Racism On The Show
In 2020, Cynthia Taylu told Refinery29 that one contestant made racist “passing comments” while she was on the show.
“There was one particular cast member who would make comments off-camera,” Cynthia revealed. “I felt extremely uncomfortable around this particular girl.”
While the comments weren’t specifically directed towards the Liberian-born Islander, they made her feel uncomfortable nonetheless.
Following the release of this article, Phoebe took to Instagram to “back” her fellow Islander.
“I can 100% back [Cynthia] and this article,” she wrote. “Even in the short time I was on the show, I witnessed racism and homophobia from a certain cast member.”
Phoebe, who was in the show’s first same-sex couple, revealed the perpetrator was also in a “popular couple”.
“Ratings over [racism]!!!!” she claimed.
Phoebe Thompson Opens Up About The Affect Of Racism On Love Island Australia
In a follow-up video, Phoebe told her followers that she’s been holding in these thoughts for “two bloody years”.
“I’ve been mentally and emotionally affected by the racist, homophobic and fatphobic comments,” she said. “I think people need to be protected a lot more on reality TV.
Source: Instagram @phoebethompson_x. 
“I certainly didn’t sign up, you know, to be f*cking hanging out with racists. What happened to Cynthia is unacceptable.”
The Sydneysider also confessed that people would be “shocked” to learn of the comments this particular Islander made.
Keen to hear more goss about Love Island Australia? Listen to 2019 contestant Jessie Wynter‘s chat on the So Dramatic! podcast below!
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