For Millennials. By Millennials.
In his apology video ‘holding myself accountable’, James Charles addresses recent grooming allegations and accusations that he flirted and texted inappropriately with minors. The YouTuber took accountability for his actions and attempted to own up to his mistakes. He says that it was “reckless” to talk to minors online and that his desperation for a relationship led him to make regrettable decisions.
Related: Trisha Paytas calls James Charles ‘an actual predator’ after his accusations of grooming surface
James Charles says it was his fault entirely to flirt with underage boys
The YouTuber was ashamed and embarrassed that he did not research more to know the ages of the people that he messages. Addressing two cases where two boys under the age of 18 were approached by James Charles, the YouTuber says that he thought the boys were eighteen. Without knowing their true age, Charles flirted and s*xted with minors.
“I was being reckless. These conversations should have never happened.”
There were multiple allegations gaining recognition online against James Charles. Many boys who were underage came out with their story saying that the YouTuber solicited explicit and n*de pictures from them via social media. In the most recent one, the boy was just 15 years old.
James Charles shared that he was misled about the boys’ age and said that:
“I trusted the information that was given to me rather than the information I could have and should have gotten myself”
He further added that he acknowledges that he made a mistake and that he needs to take accountability.
“As I did more research on this topic and self-reflected. I realized that the receipts and the screenshots and the specific details of the interaction don’t matter. Because I f–ked up. And I need to take accountability for my actions and apologize to the people who were affected by them.”
James Charles also revealed that he realized he was desperate for a relationship. He couldn’t understand why he lacked a romantic partner so he started to treat TikTok as a dating app. The YouTuber shares that he plans to be much more careful in the future and that he will request proper identification from any man he’s going to interact with in a romantic manner.
The YouTuber says he wanted to genuinely take accountability this time
He also added that initially, he wanted to film a video similar to his ‘No More Lies’ video where he addressed the allegations made by Tati Westbrook that he manipulated straight men into having a romantic and s*xual encounter with him. In that video, he showed screenshots and evidence that he was lied to and didn’t make any mistake.
Though, in this video, he did want to actually acknowledge where he went wrong. He says that it was his responsibility to verify the age of the boys he was talking to. And the blame is entirely on himself. James Charles also directly apologized to the boys that he interacted with in an inappropriate manner.
Charles also mentioned how there can be a power dynamic when talking to his fans
Moreover, he also talked about how he understands that there can be a power dynamic when interacting with fans.
“A power imbalance can happen even when it’s not intentional. What I wasn’t getting before is that the excitement that comes with talking to a celebrity is literally enough to make somebody do or say something they normally wouldn’t. Even if that celebrity isn’t even intentionally weaponizing their fame, money or power. That’s a concept I just wasn’t getting, but I now do.”
Moreover, James Charles said that he’s attempting to educate himself more on the issue and it’s a conversation that he does encourage online. Plus, he informed his viewers that he is going to take a social media break. He wants to take the time to self-reflect and understand more about the issue.
He further apologized to his fans and viewers for making the mistakes that he did. And he hopes that he never disappoints them in the future.
https://youtu.be/GsjwRp8_lWA
