Big Brother Canada (BBCAN) houseguest Jamar Lee was removed from the BBCAN house earlier this week by producers, but fans of the show have decided to create a GoFundMe and the hashtag.
On March 17, it was announced that producers of BBCAN had to make a “difficult” decision by removing Lee, citing “behaviour which occurred that was a breach of the Big Brother house rules.”
“We at Global and Insight Productions take the rules of this competition seriously, and with respect to all houseguests past and present, the confines of the Big Brother house can be trying, sometimes leading to a clash of opinions and emotions in an isolated environment. We handle these situations with care and caution, protecting the well-being of our houseguests and ensuring the integrity of this long-standing production,” the statement read.
The 23-year-old contestant said he takes “full responsibility for my actions — I lost my cool, and that’s not OK. I’ve always stood behind what I believe in and I’m sorry if I let people down.”
He added: “I want to thank everyone for their love and support, it really means a lot… this isn’t the last of me! You feel me?”
Soon after Lee was removed from the house, many fans of the show took to Twitter and created the hashtag #IStandWithJamar, and a GoFundMe page was created in his name.
The GoFundMe has a fundraising goal of $10,000 and has already raised over $4,000 as of this writing.
“Jamar Lee is a young man who was wrongfully removed from the Big Brother Canada house and blasted everywhere with negative, damaging headlines,” the fundraising page reads. “Many fans believe he was wrongfully removed.
“Over years, we have witnessed people say and do much worse, but Jamar fell victim to a sad reality we see on this show, and in this world, way too often. He fell victim to the colour of his skin and didn’t receive the same leniency other non-POC players have had in the past.”
According to ET Canada, Lee was removed after he broke a BBCAN house rule by threatening fellow houseguest Kyle Rozendal during a tense house meeting. Another houseguest, Vanessa Clements, claimed Lee’s remarks made her feel “uncomfortable” during the meeting.
(Warning: This video contains explicit language.)
The GoFundMe page also said Lee “was and remains a fan favourite.”
“He provided us with much of the entertainment this season and deserved better treatment from the cast and crew behind this show,” it reads.
“Donate as much as you can afford to so that we can show him how much we care and how much his presence will be missed. Let’s show that WE stand with Jamar Lee.”
Despite Lee’s statement, many fans of BBCAN took to social media to defend Lee and call out the show’s production for removing him from the game.
Lee’s exit will play out on Thursday night’s episode of Big Brother Canada.
New episodes of BBCAN continue to air Wednesdays (7 p.m. ET/PT), Thursdays (8 p.m. ET/PT) and Sundays (8 p.m. ET/PT).
#BBCAN8 extends from series to site at BigBrotherCanada.ca with free live feeds, hit-and-miss moments from the show, houseguest interviews, live show votes and more, beginning early March. Stream Season 8 along with past seasons for free on GlobalTV.com and the Global TV App.
To learn about all houseguests, visit bigbrothercanada.ca.
Global News and Global TV are properties of Corus Entertainment.
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