Within the aftermath of Zach Shallcross’s misguided season of The Bachelor, it was revealed that his first impression rose recipient, Greer Blitzer, had defended blackface in uncovered tweets from 2016. Again in January, Rolling Stone declared it “the quickest racist reveal in Bachelor historical past,” and Blitzer apologized for her actions on social media.
On Tuesday’s episode of The Bachelor: Girls Inform All, host Jesse Palmer invited Blitzer, who was eradicated after contracting COVID-19 throughout week six of the present, to handle her misdoing within the sizzling seat. “The reality is, as a franchise we’ve achieved a really poor job prior to now in addressing critical subjects head-on,” the host started, considerably acknowledging the present’s problematic historical past with racism. “We’re not going to overlook that chance right here tonight.”
Blitzer mentioned that in her preliminary apology she “failed to say…that what occurred was racist,” persevering with, “It’s not in regards to the intent, it’s in regards to the impression. This acquaintance of mine that I knew performing blackface was racist. Me defending it was racist. My ignorance was racist. And I’m simply so ashamed. I’m simply deeply sorry that I damage the Black neighborhood.”
After vowing to “attempt to do higher,” Greer spoke with Dr. Kira Banks, co-founder of the Institute for Therapeutic, Justice and Fairness at St. Louis College, who was seated within the studio viewers. Blitzer mentioned that she had researched the historical past of blackface and “simply realized it was a symbolism for dehumanizing the Black neighborhood,” including, “Defending that lady was racist.”
Banks famous Blitzer’s progress, however careworn that “we will’t good our means out of racism.” She continued, “It’s actually vital to not simply be performative, however to coach ourselves, to be prepared to know the historical past behind actions, and be prepared to do one thing completely different.”
Multiple social media users noted that on final 12 months’s twin Bachelorette season, Gabby Windey’s last rose recipient Erich Schwer truly wore blackface in a highschool yearbook photograph—a alternative he apologized for on his Instagram, however was not requested to confront at After the Ultimate Rose.
Throughout Matt James’s season because the franchise’s first Black Bachelor, James gave his last rose to Rachael Kirkconnell, who was {accused} of previous racist habits (for which she publicly apologized). Longtime host Chris Harrison’s obvious protection of Kirkconnell and diatribe towards the “woke police” in an interview with Rachel Lindsay, the franchise’s first Black Bachelorette, in the end led to his ousting from the franchise.
“It’s at all times evolving,” ABC government Robert Mills instructed The Hollywood Reporter in January of the present’s “vetting course of” for contestants. “So we’re clearly attempting to get higher. Clearly, your purpose is to have zero points. As we go season by season, we attempt to get higher and higher as a result of we hate when these points come up. I do assume we’re enhancing, and we’re studying learn how to good this as we hold doing it.”
In the course of the tell-all particular, Charity Lawson was topped the franchise’s subsequent Bachelorette. She turns into solely the fifth Black lead in franchise historical past, following within the footsteps of James, Lindsay, Tayshia Adams, and Michelle Younger.
