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Once the show Fixxer Upper premiered on television in 2014, Chip and Joanna Gaines became two of HGTV’s biggest stars. In fact, Joanna and Chip Gaines became so popular with HGTV viewers that many fans want to know all the interesting facts about the couple. Then, it seemed like all of that was going to come to an end when Fixxer Upper’s finale aired in 2017.
Fortunately for Chip and Joanna Gaines fans, in 2020 it was announced that the couple would be returning with their new show Fixxer Upper: Welcome Home. While many fans are overjoyed to have the Gaines back, the couple has been accused of being hateful by some people in recent years. With that in mind, it begs an obvious question, is there any truth to those accusations?
Why Joanna And Chip Gaines Have Been Called 'Hateful'
After Fixxer Upper premiered on HGTV in 2014, Chip and Joanna Gaines enjoyed a couple of years without being wrapped up in any controversies. Sadly, however, in the years since then, the Gaines have been involved in a long of scandals including the time a couple they were supposed to help called them out.
On top of that, the Gaines had their first brush with controversy in 2016.
In 2016, a video of Antioch Community Church’s pastor Jimmy Siebert interviewing Joanna and Chip Gaines was uploaded to YouTube. During the interview, Siebert notably referred to the Gaines as his “good friends” and that would come back to haunt the couple.
After all, that same year Buzzfeed published an investigation into the church which the Gaines attended and it became a big problem for Chip and Joanna.
According to Buzzfeed’s report, Jimmy Siebert explicitly spoke out against same-sex marriage following its legalization during a 2015 sermon. "This is a clear biblical admonition. So if someone were to say, 'Marriage is defined in a different way,' let me just say: They are wrong. God defined marriage, not you and I. God defined masculine and feminine, male and female, not you and I." After making that statement during the sermon, Siebert went on to say "homosexuality is a sin" according to Buzzfeed’s report.
On top of Buzzfeed’s article pointing out Joanna and Chip Gaines association with Pastor Jimmy Siebert, they took note of something else. According to the aforementioned article, the Gaines’ show Fixxer Upper had never featured a same-sex couple at that time. In response to both of those revelations, some labeled the Gaines homophobic.
Several years after the aforementioned scandal, Chip and Joanna Gaines once again were involved in a controversy that resulted in some people labeling them hateful.
In 2001, Chip’s sister Shannon Braun successfully ran for the Grapevine-Colleyville ISD (GCISD) school board in Colleyville, Texas. During her campaign, Braun ran on an anti-critical race theory platform. As a result, when Joanna and Chip Gaines donated $1,000 to Braun’s campaign that outraged some observers.
How The Accusations Against Chip And Joanna Gaines Have Affected Their Net Worth
Over the last several years, there have been a lot of former stars who’ve seen their careers hit hard after they were wrapped up in controversy and “canceled”. With that in mind, it is fascinating to consider how Chip and Joanna Gaines have been affected by some people labeling them hateful. After all, accusations like that are bound to turn some potential viewers against the couple and by virtue of that, their bottom line has to be affected in some way.
No matter what some people may think about Joanna and Chip Gaines, it is clear that the couple has amassed an incredible fortune. After all, according to celebritynetworth.com. the Gaines both have an individual $50 million fortune as of the time of this writing.
The Truth About The Accusations Against Joanna And Chip Gaines
In response to the controversies that resulted in Chip and Joanna Gaines being labeled hateful, the couple has defended themselves in several ways. The same year that the anti-critical race theory controversy came up, Joanna addressed the allegations against the couple while talking to The Hollywood Reporter.
"The accusations that get thrown at you, like you're a racist or you don't like people in the LGBTQ community, that's the stuff that really eats my lunch — because it's so far from who we really are. That’s the stuff that keeps me up."
Years earlier following the controversy with their pastor, Chip Gaines responded to the situation in a blog post. "Joanna and I have personal convictions. One of them is this: we care about you for the simple fact that you are a person, our neighbor on planet earth. It's not about what color your skin is, how much money you have in the bank, your political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender, nationality or faith."
At the end of the day, the only people who truly know how Chip and Joanna Gaines feel in their hearts are the couple themselves. According to the Gaines, they clearly feel the accusations against them have been unfair as they don’t hate anyone.
