Kenya Moore is apologizing after wearing a Native American headdress in a recent episode of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta."
The reality TV star's critics had called the costume "racist" and accused her of culture appropriation.
"I want to sincerely apologize for inappropriately wearing the Native American headdress as a costume," Kenya said in a statement to Page Six on March 23. "I now realize that this was both disrespectful and insensitive and would never have done it if I had that knowledge and understanding beforehand. I regret it. When you know better, you do better. I am genuinely sorry."
Kenya wore the costume as part of a Halloween-themed episode of the Bravo show.
Following the episode, a group called IllumiNative torched Kenya.
"We are deeply disturbed by last night's episode of #RHOA in which @thekenyamoore wore a Native American 'warrior princess' costume," the group said on social media. "Costumes that mock Native peoples, defame our traditions and cultures, and perpetuate negative stereotypes are racist. 'Playing Indian' is a form of mascotry that is not just offensive, it is part of a long history of how Native peoples have been dehumanized."
The group also took aim at Bravo and the show's producers for failing to intervene.
As this played out, several viewers interjected that Kenya is far from the only "Housewife" to wear Native American costumes. One Twitter user posted images of cast members Drew Sidora and Lauren Williams — and former "Real Housewives of Potomac" star Monique Samuels — wearing headdresses.
"The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Garcelle Beauvais was also shown to once wear a Native American costume.
Amid the controversy, Bravo issued an apology.
"Bravo aims to have the highest standards of respect and inclusivity and we recognize that recent episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta, in which a cast member wearing a Native American costume, did not uphold those values," the statement said. "We had hoped it would provide a teachable moment, however in retrospect it is clear that the network did not address this properly given the gravity of the situation. We apologize to both the Native American community and our audience as a whole."