Lea Michele responds to 'Glee' co-star's claims she made life 'a living hell'
Lea Michele has apologized after former "Glee" co-star Samantha Marie Ware accused her in a tweet of making Ware's life "a living hell."
On Friday, Michele, 33, took to Twitter to show her support of George Floyd, the black man who died while in Minneapolis police custody, prompting protests across the country.
"George Floyd did not deserve this. This was not an isolated incident and it must end. #BlackLivesMatter," she wrote.
In response on Monday, Ware, who had a recurring role in “Glee’s” sixth season, said that Michele committed "traumatic microagressions" towards Ware and caused her to "(question) a career in Hollywood."
In her apology, which she shared on Instagram, Michele explained that her initial tweet was meant to be a "show of support for our friends and neighbors and communities of color during this really difficult time," but the responses made her focus on her own behavior.
"One of the most important lessons of the last few weeks is that we need to take the time to listen and learn about other people's perspectives and any role we have played or anything we can do to help address the injustices that they face," she wrote.
After adding that she didn't remember the specific actions Ware had referenced and that she's "never judged others by their background or the color of their skin," she acknowledged, "that's not really the point, what matters is that I clearly acted in ways which hurt other people."
"Whether it was my privileged position and perspective that caused me to be perceived as insensitive or inappropriate at times or whether it was just my immaturity and me just being unnecessarily difficult, I apologize for my behavior and for any pain which I have caused," she continued. "We all can grow and change and I have definitely used these past several months to reflect on my own shortcomings."
Michele, who's expecting her first child, went on to address how becoming a mother soon has impacted her reflection.
"I know I need to keep working to better myself and take responsibility for my actions, so that I can be a real role model for my child and so I can pass along my lessons and mistakes, so that they can learn from me," she concluded. "I listened to these criticisms and I am learning and while I am very sorry, I will be better in the future from this experience."
Other "Glee" stars also tweeted reactions to Michele's initial post and Ware's response.
Dabier Snell, who guest-starred on a 2014 episode of the show, alleged, in all caps, that Michele "WOULDNT LET ME SIT AT THE TABLE WITH THE OTHER CAST MEMBERS CAUSE 'I DIDNT BELONG THERE.'"
Alex Newell and Amber Riley, who both shared many scenes with Michele over the course of the show's six seasons, responded with GIFs that fans thought spoke for themselves.
The response to the accusations also extended beyond the "Glee" team. Meal kit company HelloFresh announced Tuesday that it was ending its partnership with Michele.
"HelloFresh does not condone racism nor discrimination of any kind," the company posted on Twitter. "We are disheartened and disappointed to learn of the recent claims concerning Lea Michele. We take this very seriously, and have ended our partnership with Lea Michele, effective immediately."