The Bachelor has recently come under fire for reportedly allowing racism to continue on the show. After longtime host Chris Harrison stepping down and the controversy surrounding Rachael Kirkconnell, many former contestants are speaking out about their own experiences with racism while filming The Bachelor. Chris Harrison stepped aside from hosting the show after an inflammatory interview where he defended Rachael Kirkconnell's presence at an Antebellum-themed party that took place in 2018. The interview shocked and offended many The Bachelor stars and fans.
While recent events have exposed racist practices behind the scenes, Black stars from The Bachelor have been feeling the effects of the lack of support they've gotten from the show for many years. Outspoken stars like Rachel Lindsay and Taylor Nolan have continuously addressed the white-washed nature of the show. During the Black Lives Matter protests last spring, Rachel said that she would distance herself from the show if they did not cast a Black lead. The show responded by casting its first-ever Black The Bachelor male lead Matt James. Tayshia Adams, who is bi-racial, also ended up leading the latest season of The Bachelorette.
New stories from former Black contestants on The Bachelor are now emerging. Buzzfeed reported on the racism felt by Jubilee Sharpe, Marshana Ritchie, LaNease Adams, and Taylor Nolan during their seasons of the show. LaNease Adams appeared in the very first season of The Bachelor all the way back in 2002. She was the only Black contestant on the show at the time, but since the show wasn't popular yet, she had no idea what that would come to mean. After The Bachelor blew up in popularity, LaNease was harassed online by white supremacists. Appearing on the show gave her extreme anxiety, which she eventually had to take medication for.
In turn, Marshana Ritchie first appeared on The Bachelor in 2008. She was verbally attacked by the other girls in the house for "stealing" a white woman's spot after being set up by production on a two-on-one date. Marshana said that, at the time, she felt a lot of pressure to represent her race in a positive way, and not play into stereotypes of being angry, despite feeling bullied by other women. Jubilee Sharpe was on The Bachelor in 2015, where she was the only fully Black contestant. She said that she felt like "an exotic zoo animal," and that she knew that Ben Higgins wasn't really attracted to her but kept her on the show anyway.
These women felt that the predominately white production team behind The Bachelor needed to provide better support for BIPOC contestants after they were eliminated from the show. Not only does the series expose these women to online vitriol, but they also experienced racism and micro-aggressions from other contestants on the show. The Bachelor has a history of casting racist contestants, and this needs to change. "We need a seat at the table," said Marshana Ritchie, meaning that there need to be more BIPOC individuals behind the scenes.
Source: Buzzfeed