Homemaker extraordinaire Martha Stewart has apologized for dressing as a homeless person for Halloween.
Stewart posted a photo to Instagram showing her dirty, disheveled and unkempt over Halloween weekend, according to screenshots showing the since deleted post.
“I AM HUNGRY HELP ME!!” the photo was captioned.
Her post was largely met with disapproval during a time when cost of living expenses are very much on people’s minds. Stewart, whose lifestyle media empire makes her worth an estimated US$400mil, removed the post and issued a “distressed” apology to NBC News claiming it was her intention to bring awareness to the issue of homelessness. The 85-year-old said she was sorry for any offense taken.
Stewart, still being questioned over her choice of outfits, followed the apology with another message on Sunday night.
“It’s hard to admit when you’ve really screwed up,” she posted on Instagram. “My earlier statement didn’t go far enough. I know many people are suffering economically. Wearing a costume like I did was insensitive and not funny. I am very sorry.”
That reply also sparked conversation from some of her 3.1 million Instagram followers.
“Hundreds of people on your professional team, as well as countless friends… no one warned you?” one social media user asked.
Others noted that they dressed as hobos for Halloween when they were young and it was never an issue.
“The only thing that this brought awareness to was how disconnected wealthy people are from the majority of the population,” wrote another Instagram commenter.
Stewart was once worth nearly US$1bil, according to Forbes. The holiday weekend hardly marked her first humbling. The New Jersey native spent five months in prison following a 2004 conviction for misleading authorities investigating into her financial dealings. – New York Daily News/TNS
