Ex-Miss North Carolina USA Brittany Boltinhouse’s sudden dethronement over her alleged racist social media posts has sent shockwaves through the beauty pageant world — which is buzzing over the stunning news, a fellow contestant told The Post.
Boltinhouse, 27, was formally stripped of her title Wednesday after bosses at A-Blaize Productions, which oversees the Miss North Carolina USA pageant, conducted “a thorough review of recently surfaced information,” the group announced in a statement.
Alexis Yearde, who competed alongside Boltinhouse in June, said she supports the organization’s decision.
“She seems to be a really sweet girl, and I’m sorry this is happening to her, but I really do stand with the Miss USA organization on where they have made their decision,” said Yearde, 26.
“This is something [Boltinhouse is] definitely going to have to learn from,” she added, referring to allegations that Boltinhouse authored a slew of hateful social media posts under an alias between 2017 and 2019, according to the NC Beat.
The former beauty queen, who lives in Wilmington, allegedly used the N-word multiple times and bizarrely referred to herself as “toxic” in resurfaced posts under the username Sosa the Stallion, the outlet reported.
“I was definitely shocked to see how much was said, and it seems like her words have caused a lot of pain, especially to our community,” said Yearde, who lives about 100 miles north of Boltinhouse in the city of Greenville.
“It’s really hurtful because we have such a small community” and “because we were all so excited for her journey,” she said.
Even while vacationing in Thailand — 11 hours ahead of her home state — Yearde told The Post on Thursday that she has been “locked in” on the controversy ever since it erupted “because it’s just been so crazy.”
The pageant world “is a close-knit community and when something like this happens, it’s hurtful for all of us,” Yearde said — especially because no one saw it coming.
“I haven’t heard anything else besides the initial shock from everyone that this is happening …[Boltinhouse] got along really well with the other women at the pageant — she was very helpful, very kind during her time there,” Yearde recalled.
“She didn’t seem like a bad person at all.”
The coveted crown was handed over to Miss North Carolina USA’s first runner-up Myla Hadley immediately following Boltinhouse’s ouster.
“As beautiful as the crown is, it’s not just something that we wear as a trinket – the crown is like a microphone that amplifies the voice. It serves a deeper purpose than just to wear it,” Yearde said, echoing A Blaize Productions’ insistence on upholding the title’s “standards and values.”
Hadley, 24, will now represent the Tar Heel State at the 75th annual Miss USA competition in Miami starting Aug. 24.
The newly crowned beauty queen said she’s “extremely grateful and humbled” by the support she has received in light of the unexpected coronation on Wednesday — but remained mum on her rival’s alleged racism scandal.
The “dedicated” Hadley “has been training for this moment for over 12 years,” Yearde said. “She’s super prepared and is going to do a great job at Miss USA.”
As for Boltinhouse, “I know that, at this time, it’s probably super chaotic for her, but I truly wish her the best in this part of her journey,” Yearde said.
“I hope that she learns and that she uses this opportunity to become better educated on these things that have happened and why it’s so important to be knowledgeable on these things,” she added.
The Post reached out to Boltinhouse, who has not yet addressed the scandal publicly.
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