‘The Valley’ Star Michelle Lally Speaks Out on ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill Controversy: “I Am Not Homophobic”
‘The Valley’ Star Michelle Lally Speaks Out on ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill Controversy: “I Am Not Homophobic”
Michelle Lally of The Valley is asserting her stance, saying she’s “not homophobic,” amid rumors that she supported Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
“To be honest, I don’t follow politics,” she explains. “I don’t know exactly what that bill does, so I don’t talk about it because I don’t have an opinion.”
“I don’t believe any of those things,” she continues. “Like, I am not homophobic in any way.” During the March 26 episode of the Vanderpump Rules spinoff, The Valley, co-star Janet Caperna hinted in a confessional that Michelle appeared to be in favor of the new Florida law, which prohibits discussions of gender identity or sexual orientation in kindergarten through third-grade classrooms.
She addressed this rumors on Page Six’s Virtual Reali-Tea Podcast.
“Michelle, Brittany [Cartwright], and I were at dinner a few months ago,” Janet recounted. “And Michelle said something along the lines of, ‘Don’t Say Gay laws protect children.’ And I’m like, ‘No, no, no … you’re wrong.’”
Page Six reports that Janet shared details of this conversation with castmate Jasmine Goode, who is openly bisexual. She suggested that Michelle’s alleged support for the discriminatory law could serve as a “teachable moment.” Eventually, the essence of the discussion reached The Valley castmate Zack Wickham, who is gay. Zack relayed the information to Kristen Doute, who then discussed the issue on camera. The story escalated as the Vanderpump Rules alum suggested that Michelle might also be a Republican and a racist.
Michelle firmly denies being a “racist” or “any of these things” that Kristen implied.
“We were trying to figure it out,” the single mom remarked. “Finally, we got where this conversation came from, which was a long time ago. And it wasn’t really [even] a conversation.”
“It was just a dinner,” the luxury real estate agent elaborated. “I might have made a comment … that turned into something so much uglier. It was very upsetting because Kristen had the opportunity to tell me this before filming, and that’s the first time she mentions it? And she did add and twist a lot, so it was hard to deal with.”
In her defense, Michelle claims she is a vocal supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community. Additionally, her and her estranged husband Jesse Lally’s shared best friend, a gay man, officiated their October 2018 wedding.
“I have so many [gay] friends,” she asserts. “I embrace anybody and everybody.”
“The Valley” airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on Bravo.
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Avigail is an Entertainment blogger at All About The Tea, who specializes in The Real Housewives of Atlanta and The Real Housewives of Potomac. Avigail has a background in marketing. She’s a Brooklynite living in the Bahamas, with a passion for travel, writing, reality TV watching, pop culture and spoken word.