Sergiy Barchuck/The Guardian/Sipa USAPlus-size model Tess Holliday wants to clear the air after receiving backlash over her latest interview where she candidly claimed, "Black men love me."
"Firstly, I apologise for any hurt that my flippant comment has caused. I'll try to provide some context which hopefully will change the way in which it is being viewed, but I have to also accept that being followed and quoted is something new for me and I am going to occasionally say or do things that make people unhappy. For that I am sorry, your opinions are important to me," she wrote on Facebook following the aftermath of her comments to The Guardian.
"The incident in question occurred when I was on the street, feeling rather exposed in my underwear for the shoot, and an older black man cat called me as I was walking behind the team. I replayed the incident to the team once we were set up for the next shot, and jokingly said some semblance of what appeared in print.
"It was in relation to being cat called by black men significantly more than by white, but perhaps my tone and wording didn't convey this clearly. It was also meant to play into the idea that black men like bigger women, but the humour of that doesn't come through."
Holliday concluded her letter to fans by saying, "I am not a perfect human being, I am still growing and learning, and the title of "role model" is not one that I have chosen - it was thrust onto me, despite my reluctance. I am doing my best to live up to what that means, but at times I will slip up. I don't speak for everyone, but I will continue to try my best to speak UP for everyone."