The Valley’s Nia Sanchez Faces Backlash After Calling Park ‘Infested With Unhoused People’

The Valley’s Nia Sanchez Faces Backlash After Calling Park ‘Infested With Unhoused People’

Nia Sanchez is under fire after posting — and quickly deleting — an Instagram Story where she referred to a park as being “infested with unhoused people.” The comment immediately sparked outrage online, with fans calling out the Valley star for her “insensitive” and “dehumanizing” choice of words — especially given her own emotional story about once being homeless.

In the since-deleted post, Nia, 34, vented about her son’s birthday plans going awry. “This place is, like, infested with unhoused people,” she said on her Story. “The ones who are awake seem like they’re partaking in things that are not healthy, and it’s just like, what the heck?”

The reality star explained that her day had already been stressful, but fans were quick to point out how her tone came off as judgmental. “Who uses words like that for people that are struggling and homeless?” one fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “They’re human beings — not pests.” Another viewer added, “Wasn’t she homeless herself? Crying about it on the show? Now she’s calling people ‘infested’? Wow.”

Fans of The Valley flooded Reddit and Instagram, blasting her “dehumanizing” language. “This woman has no compassion for the homeless,” one user wrote. Another fan commented, “She’s very odd.” Others expressed disappointment but also a bit of empathy.

“I get the park might not be safe but you don’t speak about the homeless like this.” one person shared. “I thought she was Christian and had love for people?” “Nia is very tone-deaf and cruel for this. It’s disappointing to see her carry herself like this when she usually seems to be careful with her words since she was in a lot of pageants.”

Nia, who opened up on The Valley about her own past with homelessness, once shared in tears, “I was homeless with my mom when I was a kid. We were living in a shelter; we slept on couches; we pitched tents in people’s backyards; we had to go to parks and get cans out of trash cans to pay rent.”

She also revealed that, as an adult, she was forced to sleep in her car while holding a steady job. “I had to sleep in my car in the parking lot where I worked,” she recalled. “How mortifying is that? To wake up to a security guard being like, ‘You need to leave the employee parking lot,’ and having to go sleep at a Ralph’s instead.”

After receiving widespread backlash, Nia deleted the post and appeared to privately acknowledge her mistake. According to a screenshot shared on Reddit, she wrote in a direct message, “I honestly don’t know why I used that word and removed the story. It was not the right choice. I’m truly sorry.”

Despite the apology, fans are still dissecting the moment online — with many hoping the star uses this as a teachable moment about empathy and awareness.

 

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