JoJo Siwa Cancels Pride Appearance Following Backlash Over New Relationship
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JoJo Siwa has reportedly canceled an upcoming appearance at a Pride event, amid backlash over her new relationship with Celebrity Big Brother co-star Chris Hughes. Some fans have taken issue with the star dating a straight man after previously identifying as a lesbian.
JoJo Siwa Cancels Pride Appearance Amid Backlash
According to the New York Daily News, JoJo Siwa was scheduled to perform at next weekend’s Back Lot Bash in Chicago. However, the event recently announced that Siwa would no longer appear, apparently “due to a scheduling conflict.”
Could Siwa’s cancellation actually be influenced by backlash she’s received over her new romance with Chris Hughes? The pair recently confirmed they were dating after forming a bond during their time on Celebrity Big Brother UK.
The relationship has been the subject of criticism for a number of reasons. Some fans are suspicious of the couple’s 10-year age gap, while others took issue with the fact that Siwa broke up with her partner, Kath Ebbs, following her time on the show.
For others, the criticism has more to do with Siwa’s shifting identity. The 22-year-old came out as part of the LGBTQ+ community in 2021, initially calling herself pansexual but later identifying as a lesbian. In April, during her time on Big Brother, Siwa told fans that she now identifies as queer.
SEE ALSO: JOJO SIWA FUELS ROMANCE RUMORS WITH CHRIS HUGHES
Siwa Said She Felt ‘Pressure’ to Identify as a Lesbian
In a recent interview, JoJo Siwa addressed the changing labels she’s placed on her sexual orientation over the years. She shared that she felt pressure to identify as a lesbian, including from people “inside the [LGBTQ] community.”
“When I came out at 17, I said: ‘I’m pansexual, because I don’t care [about gender].’ But then I kind of boxed myself in and I said: ‘I’m a lesbian.’ And I think I did that because of pressure,” Siwa admitted. “You just get put in this world where you feel like, because you now have said, ‘Oh, I’m a lesbian,’ you have to be a lesbian. And the truth is, sexuality is fluid.”
In addition to canceling her Pride appearance, Siwa also recently postponed all of the U.S. dates on her upcoming tour, which was scheduled to kick off in July. An announcement on her tour website assured fans that “refunds will be issued at point of purchase.”
