1999-2010

Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Protesters cry racism in Idol's Antonella scandal

Just when American Idol's Antonella Barba scandal quiets down a bit, a Ghost of Topless Photos past pops up to accuse the show of All-American hypocrisy.

Frenchie Davis was a plus-sized African-American singer who got the boot in the 2003 season because she'd once been paid to pose topless for a website. She's suggested, and this morning protesters are declaring, that Antonella is being allowed to stay on the show because she's a white girl!

LA civil rights activist Najee Ali of Project Islamic H.O.P.E. is supposed to be leading a "Anti-American Idol Rally" outside the Kodak Theatre (site of the show's finale) right now.

"It's obvious that it's a racial bias... when you have a situation where a black contestant is punished and a similar situation happens to a white contestant and there is no punishment and they're allowed to continue on the show," he says. "They can't have a rule for white contestants and have a different rule for black contestants."

Frenchie adds: "I couldn't help but notice the manner in which she was dealt with was the complete opposite of how I was dealt with... I'm certainly not interested in pissing people off, but this is an unfairness that can't be ignored."

Now, as far as the official story goes, Antonella never posed professionally and was blindsided by the posting of her amateur shots and college girl-on-girl explorations.

She gained valuable sympathy from producers and the public when everyone agreed that she was not, as alleged, the woman in sex act photos (that is until someone comes up with the OJ-Bruno Magli shots showing Antonella wearing acrylic-- NSFW-- nails).

And it didn't hurt that Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Ryan Seacrest all confirmed support for Antonella while they were lounging with Hugh Hefner at the Playboy Mansion.

The only blip in the Antonella story this week has been the leaking of a few more shots (NSFW) of her stripping session on the National World War II Memorial, and some more squeaks about her siding with Hitler by desecrating the shrine. No kidding.

We'll keep you up to date on the rally...

Frenchie, by the way, is now on Broadway in Rent.

See the latest NSFW shots here.

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