Kat Von D is hitting back at ‘awful’ personal rumors in a new YouTube video titled: ‘I am NOT a nazi. I am NOT anti-vaxx.’
In the video, which was posted Thursday, the tattoo artist/cosmetics queen defended herself against the ‘hurtful’ accusations, telling viewers: ‘I just really want to try my best to clear the air.’
Kat, 37, faced a barrage of criticism after she was accused of being an ‘anti-vaxxer’ for comments she made about her plan for her son’s health. Rumors of anti-Semitism have followed Von D for years.
Setting the record straight: Kat Von D addressed rumors she is an ‘anti-vaxxer’ and an anti-Semite in a 11-minute long YouTube video shares on Thursday
‘Hey guys so as a lot of you know I’ve been getting tons of hate over two controversial topics… both which are really hard for me to talk about,’ the former LA Ink artist said, ‘I just really want to try my best to clear the air and please bear with me.’
She began by explaining why the rumors of anti-Semitism were so hurtful to her as a self-identifying Latina who was born in Montemorelos, Mexico.
Kat continued, explaining how the ‘Nazi rumors’ were first maliciously sparked by a tattoo rival.
‘I have to go back to a time that I really honestly hate to talk about,’ she admitted, ‘I hate thinking about it.’
Back during her time on Miami Ink Von D said she bucked heads with another ‘one of the other castmembers’ who then began ‘hazing her’ by messing with her tattooing equipment, verbally harassing her, and more. She went on to describe an incident when her co-worker sexually assaulted her by grabbing her breasts, as well.
Origin story: Kat continued, explaining how the ‘Nazi rumor’ were first maliciously sparked by a rival
Clashing: Back during her time on Miami Ink Von D said she bucked heads with another ‘one of the other castmembers’ who then began ‘hazing her,’ harassment that eventually escalated into anti-Semitic accusations
The bullying got so bad that Kat, who was in her early 20s at the time, eventually left the show but not before earning her own spin-off.
Kat’s LA Ink was enough to push her co-worker over the edge, prompting him to ‘forge’ an ‘anti-Semitic message’ on an 8×11 headshot of Von D.
‘He thought he could cancel my show by going to the network and showing this 8 x 10 with a forged anti-Semitic message on it,’ she said. ‘He ended up following through with this threat and went to the media.’
(In 2008 TMZ published a piece about the headshot debacle.)
‘Overnight, I was fiercely branded as an anti-Semite,’ Von D continued. ‘I remember the network’s publicist told me to just stay quiet and let it go away. The last thing I’ll say about this topic is, yes, I probably should have talked about this back when it was happening, but I did not have the support I have now.’
Though Kat’s denial was fierce, people have pointed her past relationship with Jesse James, who has been photographed in Nazi regalia and throwing up ‘Sieg Heils’ multiple times.
Unsavory character: Though Kat’s denial was fierce, people have pointed her past relationship with Jesse James, who has been photographed in Nazi regalia and throwing up ‘Sieg Heils’ multiple times
Marked man: Her husband, ‘cholo goth’ musician Leafar Seyer (birth name Rafael Reyes), also has a swastika tattoo, but last year he defended his ink by pointing out the symbol’s use in Eastern philosophical tradition
Her husband, ‘cholo goth’ musician Leafar Seyer (birth name Rafael Reyes), also has a swastika tattoo, but last year he defended his ink by pointing out the symbol’s use in Eastern philosophical tradition.
Regarding the anti-vaccination rumors, Kat was more guarded.
The makeup mogul – who claimed she was raising her son ‘vegan’ and ‘without vaccinations’ back in June – chocked up her opinion to being skeptical and uninformed. She did not, however, reveal if she had vaccinated her son Leafar, who was born back in December.
‘I am not an anti-vaxxer; what I am is a first-time mother. I’m one of those moms that reads everything. I read everything from ingredients in foods to cleaning supplies to medicines — basically, anything that is going in my baby or on my baby. I research like a complete and total nerd.’
‘After doing a bunch of research and reading the ingredients [of vaccines], naturally, I experienced some hesitancy. If I would’ve known that I would’ve let so many people down with that, I would’ve never ever shared where we were at with it at that time,’ she continued.
‘Since then, we have decided as parents to consult with our pediatrician and just let him educate us and guide us. I am choosing not to make our decision — or any of our baby’s health records — public.’
Since it’s posting the video has earned over 530k views and counting. Comments have been disabled.