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Love Island USA star Cierra Ortega was taken out of the show during the July 6, 2025, episode after old clips of her resurfaced. In the clips, she was seen using racial slurs targeted at the asian community.
On July 9, Cierra posted an "accountability" video on her Instagram page, addressing the racism controversy and apologizing for the offensive terms she used. She appeared in the video wearing a black sweatshirt with the word "Empathy" emblazoned in white on the front.
While some praised the Love Island USA star in the comments for taking accountability and issuing an apology, others criticized her for wearing a black sweatshirt emblazoned with "Empathy" and a Buddha jade pendant. The latter believed that these choices made her apology seem insincere.
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Love Island USA's Cierra Ortega holds herself accountable for using racial slurs
When Love Island USA season 7 episode 30 premiered on July 6, 2025, contestant Cierra Ortega was removed from the show at the start, with narrator Iain Stirling informing viewers that she had left due to "personal reasons."
The sudden exit surprised the rest of the contestants, as they weren't aware of Cierra's situation outside the villa. Her partner at the time, Nic, didn't know what to make of the situation and wasn't sure if he wanted to pursue any other connection with just one week remaining for the finale.
After her exit, the Love Island USA star released an apology video on her Instagram page addressing the racism controversy.
"While I was in the Villa, there were some posts that resurfaced from my past where I was very naively using an incredibly offensive and derogatory term. And before I get into the details, I want to first start by addressing not just anyone that I have hurt or deeply offended, but most importantly, the entire Asian community. I am deeply, truly, honestly, so sorry," she said in her video.
After apologizing to the Asian community for using the offensive terms, Cierra admitted that she was unaware of the weight and impact of the terms she used in her past video.
She explained that she had no idea that the word held as much pain and harm, and came with the history that it did. If she had known about these things, she claimed, she would have never used those words.
The Love Island USA star further said that she had no "ill intention" in her mind when she said those things. However, she admitted that it was "no excuse" for her as she believes intent doesn't excuse ignorance.
Cierra apologized once again for her offensive remarks, clarifying that her statement wasn't meant to be an "apology video," but rather an "accountability video," as her primary intention was to take responsibility for her actions.
"The truth is that in that moment, the lesson was learned, the word was removed and it was a true learning moment for me and I think since that moment I've done so much growing as an individual, and I've tried my best to educate others who might be accidentally holding space for these types of words that could be offensive in their vocabulary," she added.
The Love Island USA star concluded:
"All I can ask for is even if you won't give me forgiveness, if you can just allow me to grow with grace and hopefully, instead of sitting here and trying to convince you that I am this amazing person who spreads light in the world and celebrates cultures and dynamics and backgrounds, then one day you can see that from me. I'm deeply sorry again, and I thank anyone who's listening."
Love Island USA season 7 episodes premiere every day on Peacock.
