Rachel Lindsay Admits She's 'Embarrassed' to Be Part of 'The Bachelor' Franchise for Their Lack of Black Leads

The Bachelor franchise has yet to cast a black person as their leading man since the series premiered all the way back in 2002, and Rachel Lindsay, the first and only black woman ever to be cast as the Bachelorette, says it’s time to stop making excuses.

Lindsay recently spoke to Page Six about her history as a prosecutor, her relationship with husband Bryan Abasolo, and fellow Bachelor Nation star Hannah Brown's use of the N-word. She also took the time to address the glaring lack of racial diversity on the popular dating reality series.

“We have now casted for 40 seasons — even though they haven’t started Clare [Crawley’s],” Lindsay said. “There’s been one person of color in 40 seasons. We have 45 presidents. There has been one person of color. We are literally on par to saying that you are more likely to become the president of the United States than you are to be the lead of this franchise. That is insane.”

Lindsay continued, “How can I sit back and be quiet, when I am a part of something that isn’t as supportive or doesn’t reflect who I am? I just feel like if anybody is in my position, you couldn’t sit quiet about that … And I don’t think that anyone would fault me — a higher up in the franchise — for saying that.”

The former Bachelorette then brought up Mike Johnson, a black contestant who was not chosen to be the Bachelor even though he was a fan-favorite on Hannah B.’s season. “I feel like I’ve been a little bit a part of the problem,” Lindsay admitted. “We continue to make excuses as to why we haven’t seen this change. You continue to say, ‘Oh, well it’s just because the lead hasn’t picked a person of color that’s gone far enough. Oh, this person was more qualified for this person. Oh, the audience liked this person more.’ But that’s not true.”

Lindsay attended a protest in Miami last week after the murder of George Floyd, and she feels she has a responsibility to speak up against the lack of representation on The Bachelor in light of the police brutality and racism going on in America. “When I look at what’s happening in our country, and then I look at the franchise, I can’t continue to be affiliated — it’s embarrassing honestly at this point — to be affiliated with a franchise who is not on the right side of this,” she admitted.

Considering how glaringly obvious this problem is, hopefully producers at ABC will realize that the lack of diversity sends a harmful message, and they will rectify the discrepancy in future seasons.