It appears Sydney Sweeney finally realized she can't ignore the controversy anymore! Back in July, the Euphoria star sparked widespread backlash with an American Eagle ad campaign featuring the tagline "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans." You know, a play on "great genes." With a White, blonde-haired, blue-eyed woman as the face of the campaign and that phrase, many people felt Sydney and American Eagle were promoting eugenics. They also took issue with the actress sexualizing herself in a "tone deaf" ad for "The Sydney Jean," while supporting domestic violence awareness. Yikes. Related: Sydney Is An 'Ally'! Christy Martin Hits Back At Ruby Rose For Blasting Biopic! You can see why it sparked backlash. And what didn't help matters is that Donald Trump, unsurprisingly, supported the campaign since Sydney's a registered Republican. American Eagle insisted the ad "is and always was about the jeans," though. As for Sydney? Her attempts to address the scandal only made the situation worse! She sat down for an interview with GQ last month and did not say anything about the eugenics promotion accusations. Instead, she talked about her love of jeans. That's it. Even when the outlet gave her a shot to say something about it, especially the comments on how "white people shouldn't joke about genetic superiority," she didn't take it. She just replied: "I think that when I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear." Jeez. Well, it appears that Sydney now understands she needed to say a hell of a lot more - like give a clear response on what she stands for. She spoke to People on Friday about the drama, insisting she doesn't "support the views" people tied to the ad campaign: "I was honestly surprised by the reaction. I did it because I love the jeans and love the brand. I don't support the views some people chose to connect to the campaign. Many have assigned motives and labels to me that just aren't true." The Madame Web alum expressed she "leads with kindness" instead. And although she normally doesn't address "negative or positive press," she finally realized she needed to clarify her stance: "Anyone who knows me knows that I'm always trying to bring people together. I'm against hate and divisiveness. In the past my stance has been to never respond to negative or positive press but recently I have come to realize that my silence regarding this issue has only widened the divide, not closed it. So I hope this new year brings more focus on what connects us instead of what divides us." It is great that Sydney spoke out more and all. But where was this weeks ago? Even five months ago? It really shouldn't have taken her so long to say she doesn't support these problematic views. Hopefully, she learned that silence is not the answer when it comes to addressing matters like this one. What are your thoughts on her latest response, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments. [Image via The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon/American Eagle/YouTube] The post Sydney Sweeney Insists She's 'Against Hate' & Doesn't 'Support The Views' People Connected To Controversial American Eagle Jean Ad appeared first on Perez Hilton.