Bachelor Nation alums Garrett Yrigoyen and Bekah Martinez got into a heated exchange after the Bachelorette contestant posted in support of law enforcement amid nationwide protests against police brutality and racism. The two began bashing each other on their Instagram Stories, and Martinez responded by making a hefty donation in his name.
“I’ve been pretty tore up the past week about everything going on. I’ve listened, learned, helped, supported and grown,” the fiancé of Becca Kufrin, 31, began a lengthy post on Instagram on June 4. “With so many friends and family in law enforcement, I couldn’t sit back and not support them and the hundreds of thousands of men and women of all races that represent this thin blue line, as well.”
His post about law enforcement came after he shared a black square for “Blackout Tuesday” to support racial injustice and used a slew of fist emojis as the caption. “It’s important for me to recognize the ones who stand in the gap and put their lives on the line each and every single day for humans of different races and ethnicity, including those who hate them,” he continued. “We can’t judge an entire group of people by the actions of a few. We can’t judge the peaceful protesters by the actions of the few violent protesters and we sure can’t judge all cops by the actions of a few bad ones.”
The California native encouraged his followers to “remember” police officers are “still humans.” Martinez slammed the Bachelor Nation alum’s post on Instagram and said “not much has changed” regarding his “views.”
Yrigoyen previously came under fire following the season 14 finale of The Bachelorette in May 2018. Yrigoyen allegedly “liked” offensive social media posts mocking the trans community, undocumented immigrants and suggesting the Parkland high school shooting was a hoax.
At the time, Martinez, who previously competed with Kufrin on Arie Luyendyk’s season, announced the contestant was “canceled.” She added, “Yooo you can say they’re ‘just memes’ but they’re just hateful, ignorant memes. the s—t you like/follow on the internet IS a reflection of your deeper beliefs and values,” she tweeted. “If he doesn’ find truth in that ugly bulls—t, why would he like/follow those kinds of accounts?”
Yrigoyen later apologized and took “full responsibility” for the “hurtful and offensive” posts he gave a thumbs up to. “I never realized the power behind a mindless double tap on Instagram and how it bears so much weight on people’s lives. I did not mean any harm by any of it,” he added.
His fiancée, 30, later said she did not “condone” his behavior when they appeared together on After the Final Rose. “I know that he stands by his apology and he feels so bad for everyone that he did offend,” Kufrin said at the time. “He didn’t mean it. But I just want to move forward, to learn and to grow and continue to educate ourselves.”
It looks like Yrigoyen has found himself in a bit of drama again. Keep scrolling for the full interaction between him and Martinez.