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John Demsey: Estee Lauder exec who was fired over racist meme says life he had 'doesn't exist anymore'

John Demsey was first suspended from his $10 million-a-year Estee Lauder job and then fired due to mounting public backlash

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: John Demsey, a former executive group president at the Estee Lauder Companies who was sacked due to a racist post, claims that living in his six-story, $9.2 million townhouse in New York City makes him feel like he is "under house arrest," as per a The New York Post interview. 

He has reportedly spent the majority of his time in the East Side home, which he shares with his daughter Marie-Helene, 14, eight dogs, and two cats.

The 67-year-old executive, who had previously crossed paths with celebrities like Mary J Blige and Drew Barrymore, was forced to leave the cosmetics company in February 2022 after almost three decades due to mounting public backlash.

Why happened to John Demsey?

John Demsey, who worked for the cosmetics manufacturer Estee Lauder, lost his job as a senior executive after posting a meme containing a racist slur.

He apparently posted a coronavirus joke with a Sesame Street theme containing a racial epithet. "My [N-word] Snuffy done got the 'rona at a Chingy performance," it read, with a picture of Big Bird on the bedside of a sick Mr Snuffleupagus. 

Demsey's firing, according to the business, was "a result of his recent Instagram posts, which do not reflect the values of the Estée Lauder Companies."

In March 2022, he left his position at the company, as per CNN. Demsey is still subject to a non-compete clause despite taking on a senior advisory post with the private equity firm L Catterton, where he assists in identifying new business prospects.

John Demsey says he felt like a 'victim of identity theft'

John Demsey, who has been dubbed the face of "White privilege," has now stepped up and admitted that he made a "mistake." He has insisted that he mistook the meme that rapper Chingy first posted for something else.

Demsey was fired from his $10 million-a-year job after Estee Lauder chairman William Lauder and chief executive Fabrizio Freda suspended him without pay. He left in accordance with a court order after being termed racist for spreading the offending meme.

"It felt like I'd been the victim of an identity theft," said Demsey to The New York Post, continuing, "I made a mistake and I corrected it. But the life I had before this happened simply does not exist anymore."

When did John Demsey purchase his Upper East Side house?

Nearly 600 photographs, including vintage prints by Henri Cartier-Bresson and images from Demsey's numerous MAC campaigns, are displayed throughout his expansive Upper East Side house, which he purchased in 2018.

Demsey, a divorced man, described how the last 18 months have left him feeling angry and depressed in The New York Post interview. 

He claims to have worked out and lost 35 pounds in the past years but has mainly been confined to the house. 

"I almost feel like I've been under house arrest," stated Demsey, adding, "And when I do go out, people act as if they've sat shiva for me."

How did John Demsey describe his actions on social media?

The former executive of the Estee Lauder Companies, John Demsey, said that his overuse of Instagram during the pandemic was to blame for his "stupid and impulsive" conduct.

He expressed, "I was posting like 20 or 30 times a day," continuing, "People really responded to it and it just became this sort of a thing."

He further insisted that he interpreted the N-word as "nanna," and that the meme just happened to randomly show up on his Instagram page. "I’ve never used that word in my life," said Demsey, referring to the racial slur. 

What are John Demsey's current plans?

John Demsey does not want "just three hours" on social media to define his career. "I don’t want to be known as the 'canceled guy'," said the ex-Estee Lauder employee, as per The New York Post. 

He intends to reenter the social world that he formerly dominated. "I'm not done — not at all," noted Demsey, adding, "I've got a lot more in me, a lot more to say. The world is still a very exciting place."