Matt James, current “The Bachelor” star, spoke amid the ongoing scandal of the show.
The program attracted negative attention after competitor Rachael Kirkconnell’s photo resurgence taking part in an “Old South” themed party at a plantation in 2018.
Longtime presenter Chris Harrison conducted an interview with former “Bachelorette” star Rachel Lindsay, who made history as the first Black Bachelorette, in which he ended up defending Kirkonnell in the interview.
This generated a reaction and the reaction led to a public apology from the 49-year-old star, followed by the decision to step aside for a moment of personal reflection.
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Now James has logged on to Instagram to address the issue.
‘The Bachelor’ star James spoke about the ‘moving’ scandal surrounding the show. (ABC / Billy Kidd)
In his long statement, James – who is the Bachelor’s first black star – said that “the past few weeks have been one of the most challenging of my life” and that he felt the need to address the issue now, despite his season still having several episodes to air.
He called Kirkconnell’s photos “incredibly disappointing”.
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“The reality is that I am learning about these situations in real time and it has been devastating and painful to be honest,” said James, 29. “Chris’s failure to receive and understand the emotional work that my friend Rachel Lindsay was taking on in explaining gracefully and patiently that the racist story of Antebellum South, a painful story that every American should understand intimately, was worrying and painful to watch.”
Filming for the season has ended, meaning James has probably selected a winner and is no longer seeing Harrison on a daily basis.
Bachelor presenter Chris Harrison (right) conducted an interview with former ‘Bachelorette’ Rachel Lindsay (left), who received a lot of criticism about her comments about a competitor who attended a themed party ‘ Old South ‘before the war on a plantation in 2018.
(ABC)
“As blacks and allies immediately knew and understood, it was a clear reflection of a much bigger problem that The Bachelor franchise has failed to address adequately for years,” he added. “This moment generated critical conversations and reports, raised important questions and resulted in inspiring demonstrations of solidarity by the Bachelor nation.”
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James explained that he chose to “reevaluate and process” his time on the show and that of other people of color – especially black competitors.
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“I will continue to process this experience and you will hear more from me in the end,” he concluded. “My greatest prayer is that this is a turning point that will result in real and institutional change for the better.”
Kirkconnell also apologized for her previous actions, which she called “racist and offensive”.
Program representatives and Harrison did not immediately respond to Fox News’s request for comment.
Fox News’ Jessica Napoli contributed to this report