The Bachelor contestant Tracy Shapoff, who will be competing for Colton Underwood's heart on Season 23, is apologizing for insensitive tweets that have resurfaced now that she's in the public eye.
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"I want to start by expressing my sincerest apologies for the extremely hurtful words that I said many years ago. I'm so sorry for those who I have offended," the 31-year-old wardrobe stylist from West Hollywood, CA, wrote late last week on Instagram.
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"I am beyond mortified that I ever had those thoughts and then proceeded to express them. By no means does this reflect the person who I am today."
Tracy issued her statement a day after reports surfaced she had bashed people who look for love on reality television shows back in 2009 in a since-deleted tweet, according to Us Weekly.
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And in 2010, she tweeted that "fat women" at the gym should "shut the hell up stop dancing and just work out." Tracy also reportedly used the word r-t-rd on Twitter.
Tracy, however, promised The Bachelor fans she is not a "mean-hearted or hurtful" individual. She said on the contrary, she's a woman with "a huge heart and a very open mind."
"In the many years since writing those tweets, I have made a conscious effort not to be judgmental and to be accepting of all people," Tracy continued in her apology on social media.
"I have gone into a field of work where I am able to help women and men have positive images of themselves, their bodies, and feel beautiful in who they are."
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Rather than defending the words she tweeted in the past, Tracy acknowledged she wanted to "deeply apologize and learn from my mistakes."
"I wholeheartedly reject all of those sentiments. That being said, I take full responsibility for my tweets and will use this as a learning experience. I hope that we can continue to spread love and kindness in the world," she concluded.
Colton's season of The Bachelor is set to premiere Monday, January 7, 2019 at 8PM ET/PT on ABC.
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