Rachel Lindsay Tearfully Addresses The Pressures Of Being The First African American ‘Bachelorette’

Monday’s episode of The Bachelorette finally saw Rachel Lindsay address a topic that has hovered over the show since she was announced as the latest to seek love on the series. As the first African American bachelorette, Lindsay seems to have more attention than those who have preceded her on ABC’s long-running reality contest. Thanks to some drama on the show up to this point, it seems that Lindsay has finally hit a point where she couldn’t contain it anymore.

While fighting back tears and the frustrations from the many men on the show bickering back and forth, Lindsay explains how much she’s feeling the weight of her role on the show and how everything is a reflection on her on the show:

“The pressures that I feel being a black woman and what that is … I don’t want to talk about it…I get pressured from so many different ways being in this position, and I did not want to get into all of this tonight.”

“I already know what people are going to say about me and judge me for the decisions that I’m making,” she added. “I’m going to be the one that has to deal with that, and nobody else. And that’s a lot.”

If it wasn’t just reality show trickery, it was a good moment that peeled back some of the true realities of the show and the coverage that’s been happening throughout. Having to be that “special” contestant that is some outlier compared to the rest is bad enough, but it’s even heavier when you toss in the history of race relations, its role in television history, and current events.

Fans of the show circled around Lindsay and made sure she felt some support after the dramatic moment:

It also gave them more fuel to target their new enemy on the show: the poorly coiffed Lee and his questionable acts that piled on the drama:

https://twitter.com/TheAndyrew/status/876956426811432960

https://twitter.com/ambersakis/status/876954143956533248

Every reality show needs a villain, but this might’ve taken it to a new level for the series. Seeing how the show is in its 13th season and its partner in crime is well over 20 seasons, they have to freshen things up a bit. That also might be why the show had the suitors take part in a spelling contest, giving us this highly embarrassing moment:

https://twitter.com/DejaCutno/status/876976125184008192

Some would immediately stop him at the P, but he soldiered on there. At this rate, fans are going to wonder why Rachel is taking part in this show at all. She doesn’t need it.