Laura Byrne of The Bachelor has made a tearful apology, after posting an Instagram story in which she made fun of a Kmart doll with Down syndrome.
The story showed Byrne on a shopping trip with her daughter, who was asking for a doll. She captioned it “good luck to all the mamas surviving the next week of rain with toddlers stuck inside.”
She was then heard telling her daughter: “I think we have enough crying babies at home, we don’t need another one. And this baby here is truly petrifying … That is a scary AF doll.”
When followers pointed out that the doll in question was actually Kmart’s Baby Amelia, who is intended to provide representation for children with Down syndrome, she deleted the original story.
Taking to her Instagram from her car, a mortified Laura Byrne said:
“Guys I just want to quickly jump on here, and I’m probably drawing attention to something that … fuck me I can’t even begin to describe how sorry I am. I have just received a whole heap of messages from people … There’s a doll at Kmart that I genuinely just thought looked tired, and so many of you guys have message me to let me know that it’s actually an inclusivity doll, and I feel sick to my stomach for the mistake that I made. I had no idea and I’m really, really sorry for offending anyone, it was totally unintentional.”
She also thanked those who messaged her for being kind and pointing out her error, adding:
“I really appreciate that your instant reaction was not to think that I’m an arsehole, because I would never ever do that intentionally. Like I said, I feel absolutely horrible so thanks everyone.”
