She has been at odds with the Bravo Network for years after she was reportedly booted from The Real Housewives of Atlanta, but Nene Leakes is turning up her tension with the network now that she has filed a federal lawsuit. Leakes was one of the first stars of the hit series that helped make her the multi-millionaire superstar she is today, but an altercation with production while filming resulted in the reality mogul being removed from the show.
Since that time, Leakes has made several accusations against Bravo and called for viewers to boycott the network. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Leakes has filed a federal lawsuit against Bravo, NBCUniversal, True Entertainment, and Truly Original, as well as executives from the aforementioned companies and RHOA producer, Andy Cohen.
Rick Diamond / Stringer / Getty Images
Leakes reportedly stated in her suit that she endured “years of racist remarks” from Zolciak-Biermann without her co-star suffering any consequences. Specific moments in the series were also named in court documents including one episode where Zolciak-Biermann reportedly said, “I don’t want to sit around with NeNe and eat chicken.” It also alleged that Zolciak-Biermann called Kandi Burruss’s neighborhood “ghetto” and dubbed Leakes’s home to be a “roach nest.”
“NBC, Bravo and True foster a corporate and workplace culture in which racially-insensitive and inappropriate behavior is tolerated – if not, encouraged,” the suit stated. Leakes’s attorney also noted, “From the day the series began filming, NeNe was the target of systemic racism from co-star Kim Zolciak-Biermann, which was tolerated by Bravo executive producer Andy Cohen and other executives.”
“The suit alleges that the defendants’ actions violate federal employment and anti-discrimination law, and it seeks monetary damages to be determined at trial.”
Additionally, Leakes has taken to social media to accuse the network of following and harassing her.
[via]