On Friday (Aug 31) at the funeral of Aretha Franklin, Bishop Charles H. Ellis III was seen inappropriately touching pop princess Ariana Grande on the stage. In the images, we see Bishop Charles putting his arm around Ariana, his hand high above her waist. He was seen touching the right side of her chest with his fingers.
Ariana performed on the song of Franklin’s 1967 hit (You Make Me Feel Like) alongside Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan.
On this the Bishop told the Associated Press, “It would never be my intention to touch any woman’s breast. Maybe I crossed the border, maybe I was too friendly or familiar. I personally and sincerely apologise to Ariana and to her fans and to the whole Hispanic community.”
Ellis also apologized for a joke he made to Grande about her name: “When I saw Ariana Grande on the program, I thought that was a new something at Taco Bell.”
The New York Times reported that as Grande was leaving the stage after her performance, Ellis called her back, thanked her and confessed he was less than familiar with her work.
Seeing these images of Bishop groping Ariana, there was a huge uproar on social media. While some slammed the Bishop, there were some who criticised Ariana for what she was wearing at the funeral.
Here are some of the comments by netizens.
I don’t care what you think about Ariana Grande, her music or her dress. This is wrong. That bishop’s hand should not be on her breast: I just saw this because I’ve been working and not watching https://t.co/ixVhgYBJTN
— Mona Eltahawy (@monaeltahawy) September 1, 2018
https://twitter.com/ArianaToday/status/1035659644319014912
I'm really sorry you had to go thru that @ArianaGrande that groping was beyond blatant and we could all see and feel your discomfort. #NotCool
— Claudia Jordan (@claudiajordan) September 1, 2018
https://twitter.com/AshleeMPreston/status/1035751474230308864
https://twitter.com/MaggieAstor/status/1035716985764687877
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