Chris Harrison Shouldn't have Left the Bachelor
Why, as a Black woman, I am upset that Chris Harrison left the Bachelor Franchise
The new season of Bachelor in Paradise just premiered last week after being canceled last summer due to the pandemic. This season though, longtime host Chris Harrison is not returning. Instead, 4 celebrities are taking turns hosting the dating show. On June 8th, Bachelor Host Chris Harrison announced that he leaving the franchise. Harrison has hosted the show since its beginning in 2002.
If you keep up with Bachelor Nation news, you know the events that led up to Harrison’s announcement. In January of this year, within the first few weeks of Bachelor Matt James’s season, a former high school classmate of frontrunner contestant Rachael Kirkconnell posted a Tik Tok video alleging that Kirconnell had bullied her for “liking Black guys.” The video went viral and soon other former classmates reached out sharing how they were bullied by Kirkconnell and/or witnessed her racist behavior. Another Tik Tok user also shared screenshots of Rachel liking Instagram photos of her friends dressed in sombreros and Native costumes, pretending to be Mexican and Indigenous Americans. There were also other details dug up about her family’s beliefs and her background, but the main focus was on photos of Kirkonnell at one of her sorority formals in 2018. Kirkconnell, who is white, and her fellow white sorority sisters, dressed up in Antebellum costumes and socialized at a former plantation property.
It should be obvious why dressing up as a marginalized “people group” is not okay. Turning a marginalized group into a costume perpetuates stereotypes. The stereotypes can seem innocent, but they do end up being harmful. White majority culture tends to place the burden of representation on individuals of marginalized races and ethnicities. This means that the actions of individual minorities become a reflection of their entire race. Vice versa, stereotypes create assumptions and prejudgements about minority individuals that are not guaranteed to be true. This can be seemingly inconsequential things like the stereotype that all Black people like watermelon, but it can also be dangerous things such as assuming Black people are inherently violent. When non-Black people caricature Black people through certain stereotypes like wearing “urban clothing” or talking in AAVE,” or take on a persona of someone “tough” (looking at you Prison Mike), they reduce a whole demographic of people who are already seen as monogamous into an arbitrary list of characteristics. So, when someone non-Black interacts with a Black person, the non-Black person can treat the Black person based on, often inaccurate, preconceived expectations. These preconceived expectations are a big part of what leads to us as Black people being abused and killed by police at a higher rate than other races.
While Rachel and her sorority’s antebellum wear wasn’t appropriation of a minority, it was still threatening. It’s okay to learn and recognize the inhumane parts of history. It’s necessary. However, when, we as a society, have educated ourselves about various atrocities such as slavery, we need to keep it in contextual and educational environments, not sorority formals. The most universal analogy I can think of is if these college men and women were at a WWII-themed party, maybe even at the sight of a former concentration camp, wearing Nazi uniforms. They would not be dressing up, pretending to be Jewish by using stereotypes as accessories for a costume, but they would be taking a highly traumatic experience of a marginalized and historically oppressed population, and turning it into a party. Doing this can seem unharmful if there are no members of the marginalized community in attendance (which is often how these parties go). It is harmful because it creates a sense of levity over abusive historical practices that have oppressive systemic effects on our society and government today. The effects of slavery, of the Holocaust, of the genocide of Indigenous Americans, of anti-LGBTQ+ laws, and other mistreatments of marginalized communities in America, still affect the members of those communities in very serious ways. Or they are even still in effect today. They’ve either inconspicuously evolved or have been blatantly molded to fit into our modern-day society and government. Using those events and practices as a party theme weakens the understanding of their life-threatening impact. Those who are not a part of these marginalized communities have the most to learn about that impact because they are the ones who perpetuate the oppression and therefore have the responsibility to end it. Even though Kirkconnell had not yet educated herself about the harmful messaging that dressing in Antebellum costumes sent, she is not excused from being culpable for the harm it caused.
So, when Chris Harrison had the chance to address Kirkconnell’s social media likes and the photos of her at the Antebellum formal, he had the perfect opportunity to explain how these types of seemingly fun and innocent events can have very damaging, and very real effects on the lives of BIPOC individuals. He could have owned up to his own mistakes with cultural appropriation in his own upbringing and expressed how now that he knows better as an adult, he can understand why those actions were harmful. Or he didn’t even have to bring up his past at all. He could have just explained why Kirkconnell’s photos were harmful, without bashing her character or defending her. He could have been a stabilizing voice in a situation and let it flame out.
But we all know that he did not do that. In his interview on Extra with former (and the first Black) Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay, Harrison became defensive. The response to Harrison’s words spread quickly. Lindsay was immediately vilified for asking him the interview questions (which was her job). The online harassment was so brutal she ended up shutting down her Instagram account for a few weeks. To publically show their support for Lindsay, the current season's Bachelor contestants posted a statement on their Instagram accounts in solidarity with her and their commitment to pursuing anti-racism within the franchise. Former constants, including recent Bachelorette Tayshia Adams, also spoke out in support of Lindsay. Adams is a Black woman herself and recently replaced Harrison for the latest season of the Bachelorette along with former lead Kaitlyn Bristowe.
Harrison did end up apologizing. He posted a statement, did an interview on Good Morning America, and then announced that he was going to take some time off to educate himself better. However, since those announcements, he has yet to show, at least publicly, any express solidarity with the Black community or stand up on his own accord, against the racism being spewed from Bachelor fans. So, now that he has “stepped away” from the franchise, the narrative is centered on him, not the group of people he vowed to support.
In the aftermath of his announcement, Bachelor fans were unsurprisingly upset. And, as I predicted, people came after Rachel Lindsay again, blaming her for Harrison and the network’s decision. They questioned her loyalty to the show that gave Lindsay her platform (let’s not forget though that the show cast a man who had previously Tweeted openly anti-Black and misogynist statements on her season… to date her… a Black woman).
This is why Harrison’s departure is so harmful to Black people. Fans blamed Lindsay and “wokeness” for Harrison’s departure, not Harrison or the network itself. They used this as an opportunity to publicly vent pent up racist comments, complaints about “the woke mob,” insults about Lindsay’s appearance, and even sent her death threats (I’ve gone through and reported some so don’t bother looking for them. Thankfully Instagram’s community guidelines actually held up this time).
But why didn’t Chris speak up to defend Lindsay? Shortly after the initial backlash from the interview, he made a statement condemning the attacks against her. This means he knew how bad the backlash against Lindsay could get. And even more, he’s seen the racist harassment Black contestants have received in prior seasons. He’s can’t feign ignorance to the disturbing comments and DMs these contestants receive. So, why couldn’t he tell his supporters and fans to stop sending Rachel death threats this time? Lindsay doesn’t need “protection,” but it would have been the right thing to do. Even now that he is gone, Harrison still has so much public influence on the show, way more than Lindsay ever will. It’s telling how he has not used his platform for good, but rather has been passive, letting others create the narrative. And more importantly, letting his former coworkers be casualties of the attacks. Harrison had a chance to speak up and show people that he wasn’t “attacked by the liberal mob.” He just made some ignorant statements and was being held accountable for them as the face of a major franchise. Instead, he’s been portrayed as the “victim” and has come out of this situation with an 8 figure check. Meanwhile, Rachel Lindsay gets attacked with racist and misogynist hate that no one deserves, whether you agree with her statements or not. And when Black Female Bachelor fans, such as myself, read those racially charged comments, on both Lindsay and Harrison’s accounts, it’s hard not to feel their sting as well. I don’t have words to describe how depressing it can be to know that someone could hate people like you so much and then still have to go out into the world, carrying on with your life like everything is fine. You have to block out the hate or else the fear and bullying will literally debilitate you.
In our society, white Americans are systemically the most valued. People would listen to Harrison if he talked about how this situation was educational for him. If he really cared about “all of Bachelor Nation” as he claims, he wouldn’t have left BIPOC fans and contestants in a position to be vilified and targeted more than they already usually are.
So where is the proof of the “work” he claimed to be doing in his time away from the show? Why aren’t executives or Bachelor fans holding him accountable for that? Keeping Harrison publicly accountable also falls on former Bachelor stars, who showed their solidarity with Rachel Lindsay when the interview happened, yet openly praised Harrison and expressed their sorrow after his departure announcement, with no objective acknowledgment of Harrison’s prior actions (looking at you Peter Weber & Sean Lowe).* Why are those who have a platform in Bachelor Nation: former contestants, a popular podcast and YouTube show hosts, popular recap personalities, celebrity fans of the Bachelor, letting Harrison walk away as a “martyr,” while leaving people like Lindsay and Black Bachelor fans behind in the crossfire without any support. This is not about taking sides. You can express your sadness, and even your frustration, at Harrison leaving. With that though, if you claim to support Black people’s right to life, you need to be firm and openly remind others that as Black people, we are not the villains for speaking up about something racist against us. We did not cause Harrison to lose his job. If we had that amount of influence, the show probably wouldn’t have had this debacle in the first place. I would guess even that most of us in the Black Bachelor community have forgiven Harrison, but that doesn’t switch the blame. He is a grown man responsible for his words, his actions, and his education.
*Technically, I am have not found any source that shows Weber or Lowe publically stating support for Lindsay, but they have been two of the most vocal Bachelor Faces supporting Harrison.
Let me make it clear that I actually am going to miss Chris Harrison. The show has been around my entire life, so I always associate the show with him. We don’t know all of the precise inside details of the meetings Harrison and his lawyers had with ABC execs, Mike Fleiss, etc. According to various sources, he was planning to return to the show for Bachelor in Paradise, after not participating in After the Final Rose for Matt James’s season and not hosting Katie Thurston’s season. But whoever had the power to make or let Harrison leave, made a cowardly and selfish decision. None of these people involved in the decision process considered how the ripple effect of Harrison’s departure under these circumstances would direct blame specifically on the Black community. If Chris really wanted to be a better ally to Black Americans, he would show white Bachelor fans how he’s growing in his education and understanding of race in our country. If the show were really concerned about “improving” to actually be representative of its audience, then they would have thought about how Harrison’s supporters were going to come after Black bachelor fans and not those who are actually making the decisions.
Bachelor Nation, and our country in general, also needs to remember that it’s not always Black people who are the mouthpieces of “calling people out” for racial ignorance. Many times, for small things like a reality TV show, it’s white allies who have the loudest voices. If Black people had so much influence to “cancel” people, then many celebrities and executives would’ve been held accountable for racism decades ago. We’ve been having this conversation for centuries now. Thankfully non-Black allies are using their voices in solidarity more and more because we honestly do not see real change, whether good or bad until white Americans speak up about it. Black people have known since the Bachelor first premiered that this was not a show made for us. We haven’t kept that a secret either. When the franchise was threatened with a lawsuit over their lack of diverse casting, they quickly announced Rachel Lindsay as the next Bachelorette (before she was even eliminated from the Bachelor… spoiling the season a bit). But when white fans echoed our sentiments, then the producers started casting more contestants of color.
When George Floyd was murdered last summer, within a couple of months the Bachelor had cast Matt James. The final decision to cast James wasn’t because of the Black community’s efforts though, it was a rushed band-aid to protect themselves financially. I have nothing against Matt James and am happy he had that opportunity, but if the show were actually valuing their fans’ feedback, they would’ve cast fan-favorite Mike Johnson. So many fans petitioned for Johnson from Hannah Brown’s season to be the Bachelor, but the show instead picked Peter Weber, another white man. Johnson wasn’t just an “available Black contestant” to cast, he was a fan favorite and had a huge following, so he would’ve been cast on pure merit. But ABC didn’t take action until the very last possible minute, using James to fill a quota so they could protect their brand.
The Bachelor is not concerned about being racially conscious for their audience, they are a business. They act when money is to be made or lost. So it’s disappointing, but not a surprise, that they would make a decision, like forcing Harrison out of the franchise, that on the outside would look like they are being an ally, but in reality, they are just hurting their viewers they claim to support.