Black women across the country are using their collective voices to call out “toxic” work cultures and office environments. And for Hollywood, this is no different.
First to come forward was Gabrielle Union speaking out about her experience working on America’s Got Talent that led to her exit, and now American Housewife actress Carly Hughes is detailing the toxicity that she faced on set of the ABC signature series.
“I was no longer able to work in the toxic environment that was created on American Housewife. I made the decision to leave to protect myself from that type of discrimination,” Hughes said. “As a black woman in entertainment, I feel the responsibility to stand up for what I deserve, what we all deserve — to be treated equally. I wish the show well, and I am excited for a new chapter and to be able to pursue the opportunities ahead.”
Hughes was the only Black series regular on American Housewife and appeared in the show’s first four seasons. She made an appearance in the fifth-season premiere of the series on October 28, which was largely filmed before the coronavirus pandemic shut down production in the Spring.
However, that will be the last that you see of the actress on the sitcom.
“Carly was a valued member of the cast, and we had hoped she would return to the show this season,” a spokesperson for the show said. “The concerns she raised led to positive changes to the workplace and improvements to the culture, but we respect the decision she made to move on. We wish her nothing but the best.”
Hughes’s experience is the same for countless other Black women in entertainment and beyond, so we’re glad to see her demand a change in the show’s culture.