<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Former Miss North Carolina Brittany Boltinhouse is suing the Miss USA organization for defamation, alleging that the pageant used social media against her after her dethronement due to alleged "homophobic views." </p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The lawsuit names the Miss USA organization, its Chairman Thom Brodeur, and the operators of the North Carolina pageant as defendants. The case does not contest Boltinhouse’s dethronement or seek her reinstatement.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Instead, Boltinhouse claims that the defendants made false statements depicting her as racist, homophobic, transphobic, and bigoted, asserting that these statements have harmed her reputation.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">In the complaint, Boltinhouse acknowledges that old social media posts resurfaced, including six posts from 2017 and 2019 in which she used a racial slur as a teenager.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">She also stated that posts showing her support for President Donald Trump and the late Charlie Kirk were utilized by the Miss USA organization as part of a campaign against her. Boltinhouse alleged that her conservative Christian and political views were the actual reasons for her dethronement, rather than the concerns over her social media activity.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Additionally, Boltinhouse alleged that pageant officials pressured her to approve an apology statement that portrayed her as bigoted. She claimed that Brodeur later publicly referenced the statement, leading to the impression that she had consented to its contents.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The lawsuit was filed just days before the annual Miss USA competition on August 27, where North Carolina runner-up Myla Hadley will compete as Miss North Carolina.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The Washington Examiner reached out to Boltinhouse, her attorney Patrick Mincey, and Miss USA for comments.</p>