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Credit: ZUMAPRESS/MEGA, Jesse Bauer/startraksphoto, Zach Hilty/BFA.com
Ciara Miller reacted to Amanda Batula and West Wilson‘s joint statement about their relationship in her first interview since her Summer House co-stars went public.
As she also confirmed whether she got a heads up, explained what it’s like dating interracially, and revealed why she felt “safe” in her relationship with West, 31, Ciara addressed the possibility of being the next Bachelorette, reflected on her race discussion on the show, and looked ahead to her future on reality television.
“There’s something about the lack of being able to say each other’s names in [Amanda and West’s] statement that I found very telling,” Ciara revealed to Glamour, confirming that she did get a late heads up.
“Less than 24 hours. One [notification] was about 45 minutes before,” she shared. “I read it with the rest of the world.”
Following the reveal of Amanda and West’s romance, Ciara stayed mum on social media about the betrayal, choosing to instead put light on Trans Day of Visibility and the Girl Scouts in her first posts after their statement.
“I know I had a couple more hundred thousand eyes on my stories and on my profile, and I wasn’t quite ready to say anything. I posted what I felt needed to be acknowledged, and that was trans visibility, protecting the dolls, and then the Girl Scouts,” she explained. “A lot of TV is just so gluttonous, I think you have to give back in some way.”
Moving on to her dating life, Ciara admitted that dating interracially “is a whole other layer,” saying that the nuances involved can be a “mindf*ck.”
“You have to figure out, like, ‘Okay, you’re attracted to me, you like me, but do you like people that look like me? Because I’m just one person, but would you really advocate for all of us?’ That, to me, is important and vital because I don’t want to be an exception to your rule at all,” she stated.
Speaking of her past romance with West, Ciara confirmed that his relationship with his Black friends made him more attractive.
“To know that a person is interculturally mixed with a lot of different types of people is reassuring. When I date white guys, and they only have white friends, that, to me, is scary,” she shared. “It’s nice when you’re dating a white guy and they have Black friends and they have friends that look different from them. We were able to have productive and really great conversations when we were together, and that is something that definitely led to me feeling safer in that relationship with West.”
Now that she’s single, Ciara said she is “so happy” and “can’t imagine anyone being in [her] apartment.”
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing to be single,” she added, shutting down the idea of being the next Bachelorette.
“F*ck no. I’m way too private,” she declared.
While Ciara has gotten grief for her taste in men, she said the backlash was “annoying and frustrating” since she’d only dated two people publicly.
“Why do we put this pressure on young women like it’s our fault for not seeing who this person was immediately? It’s our fault for having bad taste in men, when men often present themselves as one way for the first three months and then completely end up being someone totally different,” she reasoned.
Looking back at the conversation she had with KJ Dillard, 28, and Mia Calabrese, 34, about being Black on television, Ciara said it was funny to see “what’s shocking and surprising to them and what’s not shocking and surprising to us.”
“I think there’s a lack of awareness of how people of color and Black people have to move in this world, and it’s not f*cking fair,” she declared. “Growing up, my dad always said, ‘The older you are, the Blacker you get.’ You don’t notice it when you’re a kid, but the older you get, you’ll start to notice the nuances of your relationships with people, how people treat you, how they value you, how they see or don’t see you in a scenario. People can say it has nothing to do with race, but I think at the crux of it, it has everything to do with race. Why is it that I’m so much more disposable than another person?”
“To never even have to consider how you move through the world is something I can’t even fathom. I don’t know what that’s like. I couldn’t imagine what that’s like, not having to have certain conversations,” she continued.
According to Ciara, people love to say that they’re scared of her, but she hasn’t done anything scary.
“Even if I do yell, like, [Kyle Cooke]’s yelling, [Carl Radke]’s yelling, everyone else is also yelling! So why am I so much more scary than any of the guys yelling?” she wondered.
Then, speaking of her reality future, Ciara said that while she doesn’t necessarily see herself raising her kids on television, it’s great for her right now “as a single girl living in New York City.”
“But I want to be clear: I’m always grateful and thankful for reality TV. I feel like I’ve met my greatest friends from reality TV. And it’s truly taught me so much about myself and who I am and what I can endure. It’s made me change in the best of ways. It’s given me the confidence that I have here today and some of the greatest moments of my life. I wouldn’t have been able to buy my grandparents’ house if it weren’t for reality TV, so I’m really thankful for it,” she clarified.
Summer House season 10 airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on Bravo.