Bethenny Frankel has had a lot of ups and downs in recent months.
Not even winning custody of Bryn could make former fans forget Bethenny’s weird bigoted rant on her podcast.
But a recent photo left followers stunned … and wondering if Bethenny’s engagement is over.
She is taking to social media and, in true Bethenny fashion, scolding the world for daring to speculate about her life.
Former Real Housewife of New York City and well-known public figure Bethenny Frankel is furious to be a topic of discussion.
On Tuesday, Bethenny posted a photo to Instagram.
She posed beside a gorgeous scarlet artificial tree, showing off her festive spirit in an “All My Jingle Ladies” sweatshirt.
Bethenny showed off more than that, however.
The RHONY alum was shown without wearing her engagement ring.
Naturally, there was speculation that perhaps she is no longer engaged to Paul Bernon, her fiance.
It was mere hours after sharing the photo before Bethenny took to her Instagram Stories to lash out at the speculation.
“I didn’t have to address rumors,” she acknowledged.
“But,” she continued, “rumors hurt and affect other people.”
Bethenny added: “as does irresponsible press.”
She then confirmed: “I’m engaged to a wonderful man named Paul.”
So no, there was no breakup or ending of the engagement.
“We got engaged in February,” Bethenny reminded her fans and followers.
“And months later, I was swimming and had my ring on,” she recalled.
“And then,” Bethenny described, “it came out that we were engaged.”
Bethenny explained that the news came out this way “because we didn’t make an announcement.”
She added: “We didn’t feel that we wanted to announce being engaged.”
Public figure or not, she is perfectly entitled to keep that kind of relationship milestone to herself.
“We are engaged,” Bethenny again confirmed.
She acknowledged: “I don’t always wear my ring.”
Bethenny affirmed: “I don’t have to always wear my ring.”
“Sometimes I don’t feel that it’s safe,” Bethenny explained.
“Sometimes my fingers swell or contract,” she noted.
“But,” Bethenny emphasized, “I’m doing me.”
“It’s my opinion that a relationship is about the two people in the relationship,” Bethenny expressed.
She added: “the commitment and the feelings.”
Bethenny added in contrast: “Not about announcements, not about pomp and circumstance, not about jewelry.”
“It’s symbolism,” Bethenny described engagement rings and similar jewelry.
“And if I decide to wear an engagement toe ring,” she concluded, “then so be it.”
She is certainly not wrong about that.
Bethenny’s long time struggles with her ex-husband, Jason Hoppy, are infamous.
Their divorce lasted several times longer than their marriage. Their custody dispute lasted even longer.
However, just a few months ago, Bethenny would have elicited more sympathy and less criticism than she does now.
Bethenny has been promoting her podcast rigorously, often using it to speak about hot topics like Erika Jayne’s scandal.
One touchy subject on which Bethenny touched was gender.
Though she praised her daughter’s understanding of gender and of transgender students, Bethenny’s words quickly took listeners to a dark and bigoted place.
Using her platform and podcast, Bethenny suggested that having a transgender child at a camp with mostly cisgender campers was somehow unsafe for the cis kids.
She advocated for the alternative of separate camps for trans children.
It’s not just that this is wholly unnecessary and disturbingly othering, it’s that “separate but equal” is one of the most infamous forms of discrimination in history.