Charity Lawson has opened up about the mental challenges she faced while competing on season 32 of Dancing with the Stars, attributing much of her distress to racism and online bullying.
In the latest episode of the Sex, Lies and Spray Tans podcast, the 28-year-old former Bachelorette revealed she requested an on-set therapist due to the mental strain she experienced during the ABC dance competition last fall.
"I'm surprised you guys don't have one," Lawson told host and DWTS alum Cheryl Burke, expressing her shock at the lack of mental health support on the show. "While Dancing with the Stars was great, I literally went through hell and back with my mental health on that show."
Burke mentioned she had previously suggested the idea of a “dance doctor” to make it more TV-friendly, but it never materialized.
Despite seeking advice from fellow Bachelorette and DWTS winner Kaitlyn Bristowe, Lawson said the experience was far more challenging than she anticipated.
Lawson, who was partnered with Artem Chigvintsev and finished in fourth place, shared that she faced significant online bullying throughout the competition, which Burke found surprising.
"Is it shocking? I don’t know if it’s shocking. I think to a certain degree it was expected," Lawson responded.
Having dealt with criticism as the lead of The Bachelorette, Lawson initially thought she could handle the DWTS fanbase. "I came into the Dancing with the Stars fanbase like, ‘This is going to be a piece of cake,’ only to be... almost to the point where it was so much worse than Bachelor and Bachelorette," she explained. "I was getting death threats for existing."
When asked why she received death threats, Lawson said, "For not performing enough, for being conceited, for being entitled, for being the biggest b--- on the cast. It’s crazy."
This was the first time Lawson publicly spoke about the bullying because she wanted "to protect my peace" during the competition. She confided in Chigvintsev about the negative comments she received on both Dancing with the Stars and her own social media accounts.
"It was so damaging, night in, night out," she recalled. "I had to tell Artem, ‘This is unfortunately what we’re dealing with and what we’re up against.’ If you look in comparison to every other contestant on this season, they don’t have this underneath their comments... I’m just literally existing and being called a b----."
Despite blocking and filtering comments on her account, Lawson noted that comments were not filtered on the show's page.
Later, Lawson broke down in tears discussing the comments and explained that she decided to speak out because "I have to go through this life as a Black woman and being on a reality TV show. It’s like the same things are just not protected."
Even with the best attitude, she struggled to stay in the competition. "I just had to suppress it and it got to the point where I was like, I’m just trying to survive," she explained. "I’m just trying to make it out of the season... There were weeks where I’d come home from rehearsal where I’m like, I literally hope I forget my steps and get voted off... It’s a really dark place."
Lawson also felt that the show's video packages didn't help endear her to viewers. "It’s shaped this way that I was boasting and bragging about my scores but I’m only talking about them because you guys asked me," she explained. "That was really frustrating when I started to see my packages painted in this way; it’s almost skewing the viewers in this way of, ‘All she cares about are scores’ [and] ‘She thinks she’s better than everyone.'”
When asked if she felt her race ultimately affected the results of Dancing with the Stars, she responded, "Yeah."
Dancing with the Stars can be streamed on Disney+.
The Quran - Chapter At-Taghabun : 03
He created the heavens and the earth for a purpose. He shaped you ˹in the womb˺, perfecting your form. And to Him is the final return.
