Influencer Arielle Charnas gets threats for getting COVID-19 test using her connections, offers tearful apology
Fashion influencer and blogger Arielle Charnas' step to document her COVID-19 test may cost her brand’s future as she used her contacts to get the test despite not meeting the criteria.
Though Charnas tested positive for the virus, critics slammed her for using her connections as it was the latest example of people with privilege using their influence to get tested when most Americans experiencing symptoms have been unable to do so.
Charnas took to Instagram and posted a teary video of herself to her stories on Thursday, April 2, as she apologized for the gaffe while claiming her family has received death threats.
“Just wanted to come on here and say I’m sorry. Um, I never in a million years wanted to hurt anyone and, um, we’re not bad people,” the ‘Something Navy’ blogger said while wiping a tear with the back of her hand.
Continuing further, the 32-year-old said: “I’m sorry for anyone I’ve offended or hurt over the last couple of weeks. We’re just trying to navigate through this difficult time as I’m sure so many people are. And, um, I’m just sorry I let down my community in any way.”
“We’ve been receiving horrible threats and I just felt like it was time for me to share my truth, which I did. I hope you all can see that despite the mistakes I made. Anyway I’m thinking of you all and I hope everyone stays safe and healthy,” she said while wearing a red, white and blue Champion jacket. Charnas also added that she made “every effort to do the right thing through this process.”
Meanwhile, Nordstrom, the retailer she had a splashy collaboration with last year, posted on Twitter on Thursday, April 2, saying: “Hello. Our partnership with Arielle Charnas ended in 2019, and we have no foreseeable collaborations. Thank you.”
Charnas’ latest video comes hours after she posted a lengthy letter to her 1.3 million followers on Instagram as well as on her website. In the letter, the mother-of-two wrote: “I am not writing this to make excuses and I am not searching for validation; I want to share the truth behind the story and above all else, express my sincerest remorse.
“You’ve likely read stories about my recent life choices in the media and other social channels over the past few weeks. And I get it. I’m in the public eye and I’ve built my career on letting people into basically every part of my life.”
She added, “Critics’ voices have been very loud, hurtful and largely misinformed. I’ve been accused of falsifying my own test results which is unequivocally untrue. I’ve also been receiving death threats against my entire family including my two young daughters.”
Charnas had first documented her illness to her fans on March 16 and announced in her stories that she had tested positive for the coronavirus. Her friend Dr Jake Deutsch, who runs the Cure Urgent Care facility on the Upper West Side, has provided her the test after she tagged him in her post. Her husband had filmed her being tested from the passenger seat of their car as a nurse swabbed the inside of her nose.