American Idol finalist, sixteen year old Caleb Kennedy is leaving the competition singing show after a video surfaced on the internet of a younger Caleb sitting beside someone in what appears to be a Ku Klux Klan hood.
The talented youngster who flew into the top five of the 19th season of American Idol after wowing judges and audiences with his country-rock rendition of Coldplay’s “Violet Hill”, left a long, impassioned statement on his Instagram, announcing he has left the show.
He explained that the video “displayed actions that were not meant to be taken in that way.” He apologized and said he hoped to regain his fans’ trust again after “taking a little time off social media to better myself”.
‘American Idol’ Top Five Finalist Quits Amid KKK Video Controversy
Caleb was supposed to perform an original song on this Sunday’s show. Instead, this week’s episode will now include a top four rather than top five and one contestant will be eliminated.
The teenager’s mother, Anita Gay spoke to her local newspaper about the controversy and explaining the video was made when her son was twelve years old and that the hood was part of a costume from a horror movie- The Strangers: Prey at Night and was not meant to depict a KKK hood.
Either the tweens were really bad at making costumes, or …
Of course wearing a white pointed hood is reprehensible. Even if there was no intention to bare a similarity to the KKK, logic should prevail that wearing the ‘costume’, or associating with someone in such ‘costume’ is not the best of ideas.
But it also must be remembered that Caleb was only twelve years old at the time the video was filmed/posted and is still only sixteen now. Perhaps counsel rather than cancel is what is required in this case…including for the adults who failed to explain to these children why this ‘costume’ and video should have never been made.
Whether Caleb left the show on his own accord or was pushed out by American Idol producers is yet to be seen as no statement has been made by the show or ABC
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