Kim Kardashian finally deletes tweet misidentifying black trans woman, more news

By Wonderwall.com Editors 2:53pm PDT, Jun 17, 2020

Kim Kardashian faces backlash for failing to correct a tweet about a murdered black trans woman amid pleas from family members

Kim Kardashian West may have found another way to break the internet. The star continued to face backlash on Wednesday, June 17, for failing to take down a picture misidentifying 25-year-old Riah Milton, one of two black trans women who were murdered last week, after family grieving relatives begged West to correct the mistake for days. In a "black trans live matter" tweet, West posted a screenshot of an artist's image inspired by the women's deaths. It included a photo originally — and briefly — used alongside the Human Rights Commission's statement about Milton's attack. Soon after posting the statement, the HRC issued a formal apology for mistakenly running the wrong image. Meanwhile, Milton's sister, Ariel Mary Ann, tweeted repeatedly at West urging her to take down the image, which was of another family member who had died recently. "I am the sister of Riah Milton, one of the trans girls that was killed this past week. The photo on the right isn't my sister. That photo is of another family's mom who died AND IT NEEDS TO BE TAKEN DOWN IMMEDIATELY," Mary Ann tweeted at West on Sunday. Hours later, she tried again: "Clearly, @KimKardashian can't read the room because multiple celebrities and news outlet got the pictures of my cousin #RiahMilton right but her." Nothing changed. By that point other websites had started reporting on the situation. On Monday, Mary Ann wrote: "THE PHOTO ON THE RIGHT IS NOT RIAH, TAKE IT DOWN! THAT WOMAN IS MY AUNT WHO PASSED AWAY." Hundreds of messages from concerned Twitter users followed, according to PinkNews. The artist who made the image got involved, too, urging Twitter followers to report West's error. West's tweet was finally gone by Tuesday, which Buzzfeed says happened only after the outlet contacted her team for comment. As of Wednesday, she had neither commented nor apologized. Speaking to Buzzfeed, Mary Ann said West's refusal to take the image of her recently deceased aunt where Milton's picture belonged, "added a whole other level of stress on top of everything else that I was dealing with, especially because I saw that the photo was being retweeted." Said another family member: "Everyone else used the same picture of Riah except Kim, and it makes me question if she really cares about Black trans lives."

Keep reading for an update on Dolly Parton's new book and more …

Dolly Parton announces new book about her life amid calls to replace Confederate statues with her likeness

If Dolly Parton has yet to comment on a recent Change.org push to "replace all Confederate statues in Tennessee" with her likeness, it could be because she's busy promoting a forthcoming "visual memoir and annotated songbook," "Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics." Chronicle Books announced the release, due out in November, this week, calling it an exploration of "the personal stories behind the lyrics" of 175 of the singer's favorite original songs, according to SoundsLikeNashville. The book aims to show "the personal stories behind the lyrics — in her own words — along with never-before-seen photographs and memorabilia," the outlet reports. "A songteller is what I am, and this is my first-ever book of lyrics," Parton explains. "So, I've revisited my memories and opened up my archives to share the stories and treasures behind them in a way I never have before." Speaking of "treasures," that's just what fans including Henry Winkler have been calling Parton on social media in posts linking to the Change.org petition, which comes on the heels of calls from Taylor Swift, Reese Witherspoon and more celebs to ditch Tennessee's many Confederate icons. The keyword there might be "many," though. While Parton's historic (and ongoing) music career, along with her decades-spanning philanthropic projects, make her a great choice for a statue anywhere, some, including the New York Times, have pointed out she's long refused to share her political positions. Others, according to EW, have suggested on Twitter that Confederate statues should be replaced with black leaders, rather than white country singers.

Kelly Clarkson was on 'an emotional roller coaster' before split; quarantine may have made things worse

Would Kelly Clarkson and her soon-to-be ex-husband Brandon Blackstock still be together were it not for the pandemic? Maybe. A source tells People that while the "split was a long time coming," quarantining together in Montana turned out to be "stressful" and ultimately "exacerbated any issues" that already existed between the two. Clarkson, who filed for divorce from Blackstock earlier this month after almost seven years of marriage, also told Glamour UK she's been "on an emotional roller coaster" in a video interview published this week but presumably filmed prior to the divorce filing. "This has been really hard as a working parent 'cause I'm still doing all the same jobs. … It's been exhausting, honestly," she says in the clip. She goes on to cite duties like, "cooking every meal and cleaning nonstop after toddlers and teenagers. (She and Blackstock share River, 6, and Remington, 4, but his kids from a previous relationship are in their teens.) "I definitely had to remind people that I work with, like, 'You hired a mom,'" she adds. "And I'm not an absentee mom. Like, I'm a full-on mom. And I already have abandonment issues, so I don't want to pass those down."

Nicki Minaj praises Lil Nas X for 'speaking [his] truth'

Lil Nas X finally admitted to having set up a Nicki Minaj fan account Barbz long assumed was his — and Minaj is all about it. JustJared reports the update came out of an exchange between the artists on Twitter, where Nas X invited the rapper to collaborate with him. At some point, a fan chimed in about the account, @nasmaraj, asking him why he never copped to being behind it when "we all knew who you were." Nas X replied, "i didn't want people to know i was gay tbh." Another fan said liking Minaj's music doesn't mean someone is gay, to which the rapper replied, "it don't but people will assume if you had an entire fan page dedicated to nicki u are gay. and the rap/music industry ain't exactly built or accepting of gay men yet." Minaj later addressed the secret fandom by tweeting, "It was a bit of a sting when you denied being a barb, but I understand. 🎀 Congratulations on building up your confidence to speak your truth. @LilNasX."

Pharrell Williams helps usher in a new era of Juneteenth observances for Virginia

In the wake of widespread protests against racism and police brutality sparked by George Floyd's death, major entertainment, media and sports companies have announced plans to honor Juneteenth as a company holiday. On Tuesday, Virginia native Pharrell Williams helped his home state follow suit, joining Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for a press conference announcing that going forward, June 19 will be an official state holiday and a paid day off for state employees, according to People. Celebrated on June 19, Juneteenth commemorates the day a Union general announced to enslaved people in then-remote Galveston, Texas, that they were free. "From this moment on, when you look at the vastness of the night sky, and you see those stars moving up there, know that those stars are our African ancestors dancing. They're dancing in celebration because their lives are finally being acknowledged," Pharrell said. "I can't say this enough — a paid holiday. It's not the end of it, it's merely just the beginning. Their lives matter. Their descendants' lives matter. Black lives matter in the eyes of the commonwealth. I can't say that it always has, but finally we recognize that black lives absolutely matter — and that's not political." Media, entertainment and sports organizations that recently announced plans to observe Juneteenth include Twitter, the NFL, Google, Warner Music Group, Sony Music and Spotify.

Inside Demi Lovato and Max Ehrich's $2500-a-night weekend getaway spot

Earlier this week, Demi Lovato and her new(ish) boyfriend Max Ehrich both posted social media lovefest remembrances of their romantic weekend getaway to Joshua Tree, where the singer said she was traveling to "work on a project." Turns out the project — and the PDA — went down in a $2,5000-a-night pad known as "The Invisible House." According to TMZ, the name comes from the building's mirrored glass external walls, which make it look like nothing but another patch of desert. The 5,500-square-foot house features four bedrooms, plus a movie projection screen, a 100-foot-long indoor swimming pool and sliding doors to the outside. It's also reportedly available to rent for photo and video shoots, which TMZ notes could be why Lovato was there.

Denise Richards explains 'RHOBH' hiatius

For the second Wednesday in a row, "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" fans will not be treated to a new episode this week. In a recent appearance on SiriusXM's
"The Jess Cagle Show," Denise Richards explained why, telling Cagle that social distancing mandates due to the coronavirus pandemic made it too hard to film the confessionals, according to Women's Health. Like the cast of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," however, the stars of "RHOBH" have started filming the confessionals themselves. "We have someone come in and set everything up with a mask," she explained. Denise added that they still have to "catch up with" some episodes before they can be current and get back on the air with new shows, which is currently slated to happen July 8.

'You' actor, comic Chris D'Elia responds to allegations he sexually harassed underage girls online

Chris D'Elia has responded to allegations he solicited inappropriate photos or sex from underage girls online. The allegations surfaced after someone named Simone Rossi began sharing threads allegedly showing the 40-year-old comic and Season 2 "You" actor texting and emailing when she says she was 16. A number of anonymous women later posted that he'd engaged in similar behavior with them. Some of them also said they were underage at the time, according to TMZ. The pattern reflects a storyline in "You" in which D'Elia's character, Henderson, a comedian, turns out to have a dark past that includes similar behavior. On Wednesday, TMZ reported D'Elia gave the following statement on the allegations, which as of this week have only been made online. "I know I have said and done things that might have offended people during my career, but I have never knowingly pursued any underage women at any point," he said. "All of my relationships have been both legal and consensual and I have never met or exchanged any inappropriate photos with the people who have tweeted about me." D'Elia added: "That being said, I really am truly sorry. I was a dumb guy who ABSOLUTELY let myself get caught up in my lifestyle. That's MY fault. I own it. I've been reflecting on this for some time now and I promise I will continue to do better."

Duchess Kate talks to kids about kindness in virtual school assembly

Duchess Kate and Prince William have been focusing their charitable efforts on supporting mental health services as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. Kate continued that thread this week when she lead the school assembly for Oak National Academy. According to a teaser clip excerpted by Elle, the duchess, speaking via Zoom, used the platform as a chance to talk to kids about "the importance of being kind and looking after one another." Part of the video, which airs in full on Thursday, shows Kate hearing from other young students about their interpretations of the meaning of "kindness." The assembly appearance ties in with Kate's Hold Still campaign. The open photo call, which Kate told social media followers was almost up as of Wednesday, aims to bring British citizens together with a virtual exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery showing portraits of "acts of kindness," "heroes and helpers" and "your new normal."

Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves talk 'tough love' parenting and more

The latest edition of Town & Country takes a closer look at the world's most valuable philanthropists. Matthew McConaughey and his wife Camila Alves lead the MVP givers parade featured in the issue, thanks to their Just Keep Livin' Foundation, which now works in 37 high schools and helps almost 3,000 students access everything from self-care to mental health care to academic guidance. Asked why they started the foundation to begin with, Alves explains it was inspired by their ability to do things within their own family to help others. "When you have your first child and you're in the position that Matthew is, whoever gets that first photo will make a lot of money," she says. "When we found out that the person was going to make over a million dollars on a photo, we were like, 'No. We're going to do an exclusive and get the money and put it into the foundation.'" The couple also open up about their own parenting approaches in the profile. "Sometimes loving your kids means giving them just what they want. Other times it means tough love," the actor admits. "Affluent people can give their kids everything they want, but they're not usually going to get what they need. Loving a child is a lot harder if you really give a damn. 'No' takes a lot more energy. It's a lot easier to say 'yes.'"