Why are we judging Celebrity Big Brother’s Chloe Jasmine for being posh?

Ever heard of poshism? It's time to explain why Chloe Jasmine's accent does NOT make her fair game for online bullying and ridicule… 

Why are we judging Celebrity Big Brother's Chloe Jasmine for being posh?

by Kayleigh Dray |
Published on

Chloe Jasmine has her own unique style and an effortless bluesy voice - which would sound perfectly at home in a 40s jazz bar.

"If you wouldn't call someone a chav, you shouldn't call them a posh bird either."

But Chloe has something a little different from her fellow CBB contestants – and it's something the public hates.

Yup, I'm talking about her 'posh' accent.

READ: WHY IS BULLYING SOMEONE FOR BEING BEAUTIFUL SEEN AS ACCEPTABLE?

Back on The X Factor 2014, Chloe was one of the first to take the piss out of herself and her plummy voice, interrupting herself halfway through a little bio about herself to throw in a casual "yah darling, yah." But she has proven to be polite, sweet and absolutely non-judgemental when it comes to others.

"I think you're wonderful just as you are," she told Mel B, when the former Spice Girl - famed for her strong Leeds accent - confessed that she'd love to speak like Chloe Jasmine someday.

So why on earth do we think it's okay to judge the model-turned-singer for HER accent?!

Taking to Twitter, haters of Chloe Jasmine wrote gems like: "Overdoing the toff thing, love."

Another added: "Omg this posh girl is so irritating."

One more insisted: "Cowell has it rigged in favour of this publicity seeking posh bird."

READ: DOES MORE NEED TO BE DONE ABOUT CYBERBULLYING?

And plenty more, including respected TV journalists, wrote her off as a 'novelty act', just there to be laughed at as a little light relief in comparison to all the 'proper;' singers.

At Judge's Houses, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini even predicted Chloe-Jasmine would be deemed 'unsuitable' as an X Factor contestant due to her poshness. To this, Chloe-Jasmine said, and quite rightly, that she was "just a normal girl".

And as soon as she was announced a finalist, someone dug out a video of a much younger Chloe auditioning for the 2006 edition of The X Factor - without her signature posh accent.

Cue cries of "FAKE POSH BIRD!" and "SHE'S PAID SIMON TO LET HER STAY!" across the nation.

It’s worth pointing out that, between her two auditions, she sat a difficult scholarship exam to attend a £30k-a-year school which would play havoc with even the strongest regional accents.

But, regardless of whether the girl was raised to be well-spoken, or simply preferred to present herself that way, is beside the point. Because it was what happened next that was truly the worst case of public ridicule and bullying.

"NOT SO POSH NOW" blared out headlines, revealing Chloe once did a modelling shoot featuring kinky outfits – including a sexy little Bo Peep costume and hot nurse’s outfit.

Via ITV

This was followed almost immediately by another article, which we’re not going to link to, which ‘outed’ her as having attended Killing Kittens, an upmarket club for swingers in the posh end of London.

First and foremost, this is another case of blatant slut-shaming; Chloe Jasmine is a young girl, who took on the modelling jobs that her agency offered her, and using it as a smear campaign against her is downright cruel.

Secondly, in claiming that Chloe ISN'T posh because of this, those people are essentially, also slamming the lower-classes as being atypically sex-starved maniacs.

Thirdly - why does her upbringing have anything to do with it? Are posh people not allowed to have sex? This isn't an episode of Downton Abbey, after all – and if we slammed Lola Saunders for her class and sexuality in the same way, there'd be a national outcry.

Via ITV

Yes, Julian Fellowes caused controversy a few years ago when he claimed that "poshism is the last acceptable form of discrimination" in this country, but he has a point. Because it's not just Chloe Jasmine who has fallen foul of the public's stereotyping of the upper-classes; from the cast of Made In Chelsea to Gogglebox's Steph and Dom Parker, 'posh' people have become caricature versions of themselves - and the wannabe X Factor winner is no different, with the edit crew choosing to focus on her upper class tendencies as the one defining factor of her personality.

So what if she is posh? Who even DEFINES what posh means? From what I can gather, it's nothing more than being well–spoken, having good manners and a strong desire to succeed.

And picking on Chloe for her voice is just as cruel as picking on some other girl for her weight, for her hair colour, or for being a 'chav'.

We need to start recognising this for what it is – bullying – and put a stop to it now.

You should also read: Do reality shows like Big Brother encourage bullying à la The Hunger Games?

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