DB NEWS • March 29, 2021
In a 12-minute Facebook video, dance dad Terry Bowens alleges that the owner of Star Systems National Talent Competition, Marcy Tuttle, racially profiled him.
According to Bowens, he was watching his child compete at one of the company’s regional events in California, when he was approached by a security guard who asked him to present a waiver form. Someone at the competition, he says, was questioning why he was there.
After Bowens' wife produced the waiver, Tuttle allegedly asked him for additional identification. Bowens says no other parents at the dance competition were questioned, and that the security guard later apologized to him.
After Bowens posted about his experience, other stories about Tuttle started to surface. One person posted a screenshot of a Facebook message, in which Tuttle appears to use the N-Word: "in (sic) case you forgot even more i (sic) REALLY HATE THAT [N-WORD]" the message says.
A different screenshot appears to show Tuttle make the argument that "slavery made Black men stronger willed, harder workers..."
In response to condemnation from members of the dance community, Tuttle released a statement via Facebook, saying that she planned to "step aside" from her position as head of the company.
Sources close to the situation, however, say the post has since been deleted.
DANCEBUZZ Magazine cannot confirm the screenshots in this story were not modified.
This story was originally reported on March 16, 2021 by @dancebuzzmag (formerly @dancebuzzofficial)
