The Bachelorette star Becca Kufrin is defending her season's early frontrunner, Garrett Yrigoyen, in his social-media controversy.

ADVERTISEMENT


In a sneak peak of Thursday's ON with Mario Lopez, Becca was asked about the latest The Bachelorette scandal in which Garrett -- the recipient of her First Impression Rose -- has come under fire for "liking" sexist, homophobic and politically-extreme Instagram memes prior to his stint on the show.

"What's up with Garrett? He's come under attack recently over things he's liked on social media," Mario Lopez asked Becca in the clip obtained by People.

RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' SEASON 14: MEET BECCA KUFRIN'S 28 BACHELORS! (PHOTOS)

"I mean, here's the thing. Is it fair to judge someone based on who they follow, what they like? That's not being very open-minded if you're just going to start to discriminate on someone's thoughts."

ADVERTISEMENT


Becca agreed Bachelor Nation shouldn't be so quick to judge someone, especially when the person does not directly post offensive opinions.

"I think I have learned so much from this journey. I met 28 guys who our ideals weren't always the same. They have different interests," Becca explained.

"They have different hobbies, different things that they believe, and that's what's been so great about getting to know these guys, because everyone has different viewpoints and that's what I loved about this journey."

Garrett, an apparent staunch conservative, is being slammed for allegedly liking posts on Instagram that mock feminists, undocumented immigrants, transgender people -- such as Caitlyn Jenner's transition -- and Parkland shooting survivors.

Becca, who recently revealed she got engaged at the end of her journey to find love on The Bachelorette, publicly supports Hillary Clinton and the equal rights movements, such as the Women's March.


ADVERTISEMENT


RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)

"I just want everyone to watch it back and to get to know these guys and to get to know me for who we really are and not social media," said the 28-year-old Minnesota publicist, "because that's just a small glimpse into a person and it's not always reflective of who they are."

Garrett's "likes" on Instagram were as recent as November 2017.

Shortly after criticism began circulating last week that Garrett is "racist," "homophobic," "heartless" and "sexist," he made his Instagram account private on May 24 and then deleted it entirely.

Days later, Garrett created a new Instagram page under a different handle to hopefully start fresh, but former The Bachelor contestant Ashley Spivey focused the spotlight on the issue by posting screenshots of the material on her own social media. (Ashley competed for Brad Womack's heart on Season 15 of The Bachelor in 2011).

ADVERTISEMENT


In a separate interview with Entertainment Tonight, Becca echoed her thoughts on the Garrett controversy.

"I did things in the past that I'm sure wasn't the best thing, but I just want people to stay open-minded to everyone," Becca explained, without revealing whether the scandal has changed her opinion of the Season 14 bachelor.

Becca did say, however, if the allegations were true, she would "confront" the man involved and "have a discussion about it. We would get to the bottom of it and we would find a solution."

"I can't fault on anyone for what they believe and who's to say that anyone is truly what they believe in if they just double tap," Becca reasoned to ET.

"I can't speak to that because that's just not me. I am a strong woman and I do believe in certain things, but again, that's what's so great about our country -- everyone is entitled to their own opinions."


ADVERTISEMENT


To find out how far Garrett allegedly makes it this season, click here to read our The Bachelorette spoilers.

RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)

Interested in more The Bachelorette news? Join our The Bachelorette Facebook Group!













About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.