Lilly Singh, the first queer Asian late-night show host and the first woman to host a late-night show in 33 years, is now facing backlash two weeks after her show, “A Little Late with Lilly Singh”, goes on air.
According to People, the 31-year-old Indian-Canadian show host made the joke when she visited Jessica Alba’s home and saw her children wearing the turbie twist towels on their head. Alba recounted how the kids still had their towels on to dry their hair when they met Singh in their home.
“They look like my Punjabi friends,” the late-night show host said. “It’s fine.”
On Friday, Singh posted on her Twitter account, “Don’t take yourself too seriously today. Have fun. You deserve it,” which some users interpreted to be her response to the criticism she received for the joke, Entertainment Weekly reported.
That same day, the television host, who was known for running the YouTube channel IISuperwomanII, apologized for what she said.
In her open letter, Singh explained what had happened in her mind that made her say those words.
“In the moment, my thought process was ‘don’t be embarrassed! I think that’s dope.’ But in hindsight I recognize that was a disrespectful and problematic joke to make that has a lot of painful history behind it. And I’m very sorry,” she wrote.
Despite her apology, many Twitter users were still offended by Singh’s comment in her show.
In addition to the apology letter, Singh shared an online video about the cultural history of the turban on her Twitter.
The segment where she made the joke in the show has been removed from the episode and all online clips, the TV show host said.
Featured image via Instagram / Lilly
