America's co-founder accused of making racist remarks in front of Pageant contestants

Four former female candidates of America said Monday that the co-founder and chairman of the contest had made offensive and racist comments about black men and women at an event that took place at month of August in Las Vegas (Nevada).

The president and CEO of America, David Marmel, reportedly commented on racial stereotypes and professional athletes kneeling at the national anthem at a party before the televised competition, women said.

The four women – Kimberly Phillips, Brandy Palacios, Jeri Ward and Crissy Timpson – said they could not remain silent on the subject and did not want other women to be subjected to such comments.

Phillips, currently Mrs. Deleware, claimed that she was sitting with Marnel at a party on August 21, 2018, when he made these comments.

Phillips, Palacios and Timpson were sitting with another anonymous black contestant when Marmel reportedly told them that "black women must stop having babies with four dad babies and that all black men are in jail because they are not safe. they must stop selling drugs and kill themselves. "

Marmel also asked if the women were aware of her work with the Black Achievement Awards, saying that he had thought to create the award-winning shows when he would have seen the Top 100 most influential blacks of Ebony magazine. He then stated that he knew the magazine owners and that they were "the most racist people he's ever encountered, as they all used the term n —- r freely between them".

The women also alleged that Marmel had said that it was fine that he used the term because the ebony owners called him "brother".

"At this point, he placed his arm next to mine and to compare the color of the skin," said Palacios, current Missouri.

Ward stated that she was not sitting at the table with the other women, but that she was behind Marmel at another table and that she corroborated the story of her competitors.

Timpson, the New Jersey Lady, claimed to have heard Marmel make similar remarks to her just days before when she was showing up to her. Marmel reportedly told Timpson "the kneeling bastard must stop disrespecting my flag" after hearing that Timpson's husband is currently serving in the US Air Force.

Lawyer Gloria Allred, who represents the four women, said that there was currently no draft claim against Marmel or the organization Mrs. America. Allred said the former candidates are asking the organization to create an action plan, which includes awareness training on racial prejudice and stereotypes.

After the press conference, Marmel told NBC News that he had a conversation with them about the breed in August, but that the women misled his statements, calling their statements "ugly" and "false". ". He also stated that he did not understand the "crusade" of former competitors and asked if it was an "inverted racism".

He stated that he had joined the women at the party in Las Vegas after seeing them alone and that he feared that they would be separated from the group. Marmel said that he did not want to sound like he favored them and the women gave him "permission to speak out loud".

Marmel said that he had explained to women that he had seen in the 1950s, as a young Californian who was playing baseball in the south of the country, placards bearing the inscription " No Jews "and using a pejorative term to designate blacks. The women also told this story during their press conference. Marmel said the experience had touched him as a young Jewish man.

He reportedly told women "how this experience brought me closer to my African-American siblings because I am also discriminated against," said Marmel. "It was an experience I shared with African American baseball players."

Marmel also stated that his other comments dealt with things he had learned during conversations with the staff of Ebony and Jet magazines, where he had learned that African-American children born out of wedlock and crime were big problems for the black community.

"An exchange of points of view is a good thing.The conversation was not subjective, it was an overview of the total experience of David Marmel's life", he told NBC News.

He stated that these experiences had pushed him to create the Black Achievement Awards. Marmel claimed that during his tenure as executive producer, he had hired black staff and had highlighted the achievements of hundreds of African-Americans.

He told NBC News that he had once been invited by the NCAAP to dine with the family of Martin Luther King Jr. in order to be thanked for his work in the service of the community.