The Bachelorette star Rachel Lindsay has infamously been the only person of color to lead the show until this year.
Right now, Tayshia Adams is The Bachelorette and Matt James will take over as The Bachelor for the 2021 season.
After criticism from viewers and Bachelor contestants over the lack of diversity, ABC decided to address this feedback by focusing on diversity.
During last week’s episode of The Bachelorette, ABC decided to give more airtime to a date between Tayshia and Ivan.
It was during this date that the two decided to have an important chat about the Black Lives Matter movement.
Rachel Lindsay says she was disappointed with Tayshia Adams
Viewers were thrilled that ABC would provide such a platform to share such an important message about racism in the country. But while fans were excited, one person felt a bit disappointed in The Bachelorette lead.
Rachel decided to dish her thoughts on her Bachelor Happy Hour podcast. Here, she shared that she didn’t think that Tayshia really did the best when it came to discussing such important matters.
“Tayshia made a very important statement,” Rachel explained. “She said she’s always tried to blend in because she knew she was different. And what that translates to is she tried to assimilate to whiteness and tone down her blackness. That’s basically what she was saying and I so wanted more from Tayshia in this conversation.”
Rachel reveals that she got emotional talking about the people the world has lost due to police violence and systemic racism. She revealed it made her emotional because the list didn’t start in 2020. Rachel wanted more from Tayshia as she felt it was clear that Tayshia hadn’t experienced anything like Ivan had.
“I wanted Tayshia to talk about why that is. Why she felt like she had to blend in. Why this is such a struggle for her. Why it’s hard for her to talk about, and not just as a Black woman, but as a Black and Latino woman. She’s a woman of color, she’s representing two cultures and two communities. I wanted her to express that,” Rachel pointed out during a conversation with Becca Kufrin, her podcast co-host.
Rachel Lindsay praises Ivan after his conversation with Tayshia
But Rachel was thrilled with Ivan’s contributions to the conversation. Rachel praised him for sharing his personal experiences, including the fact that he had been called the N-word.
Viewers praised Ivan and Tayshia for having such a deep and important conversation on The Bachelorette. It took a long time for people to have such important conversations on the show, but Rachel is happy that it’s finally taking place.
While Ivan had been in the background on this season, Tuesday’s episode quickly made him a fan favorite.
We already know that Ivan is one of the top four, but as far as we know, he is not the final man standing.
The Bachelorette airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on ABC.