This season of The Bachelor is over but it’s been one of the most controversial seasons ever. This season dealt with racism, bullying, the pandemic, and the first Black bachelor ever! Although this season has been all over the place, we over at MEF want to talk about just how ✨ C H A O T I C✨ it has been.
To start off, we’ve finally been given a Black bachelor, Matt James! Although it is long overdue, it is great for Black people to see some representation on screen. It was also great to see so many Black women cast as a love interest for our bachelor. It’s always been hard for Black women to find love on reality television shows because no one ever chooses them. It makes us believe that we aren’t good enough to be loved and that’s just not the case.
2/3 of the women that made it to the finals are Black and that was a win for us Black women! It has been great seeing Black women choose Matt and be vulnerable as well. Black people expressing their emotions and feelings isn’t talked about much within the Black community. So, to have Black people talk about how they’re feeling and to do it on t.v is inspiring.
Another level of disappointment
Although we Black people have our own internal issues, we still have to face the biggest issue of them all, racism. As this season of The Bachelor continued, fans decided to do their own research on the contestants. Fans found photos of one of the contestants, Rachael Kirkconnell, attending a Southern antebellum plantation themed-party. Also, there were claims that Rachael bullied students at her high school and college for dating Black men. How ironic.
It was extremely disheartening and frustrating to see this surface. Imagine being a Black woman watching this show and possibly rooting for her only to find out she doesn’t like you because of the color of your skin, or because you’re dating black men. When the pictures surfaced, the current contestants took a stand and demanded justice. A previous Bachelorette, Rachel Lindsay, also demanded accountability. Was this an insensitive act, or was it just straight-up racist?
Kirkconnell distributed an apology but before an apology was distributed, the host of The Bachelor, Chris Harrison, defended Kirkconnell on an interview show with the previous bachelorette, Rachel Lindsay, saying that this was normal. Girls her age always used to do themed parties like this in 2018. Harrison also asked whether the photo was a good look in 2018 or in 2021. Rachel Lindsay expressed that a photo like that is not a good look period and that she should be held accountable for her actions.
Fans were taken aback when they realized what type of time Harrison was on. Harrison then realized the mistake he made and issued an apology and decided to step down as host for the remainder of the season.
Bully or Bystander? Which is worse?
Another tribulation the contestants, The Bachelor, and fans had to face were women being bullied on this show. It was hard for fans to watch women constantly being picked on with no one to defend them.
Some women on this show arrived on episode one and others arrived later in the season. The women that were there first weren’t too happy about the newcomers. The O.G contestants decided they would belittle the new women and get away with it.
Women have called others escorts, belittled them, and gaslit them. This season most definitely gave off mean girl energy. Things weren’t calmed down until contestant, Katie Thurston, became frustrated with how the women were being treated and expressed concerns to Matt.
Katie lost respect from the women in the house because they believed that she was trying to start drama. However, she did gain a lot of support and respect from fans. A few weeks later, Katie was sent home because Matt no longer saw a connection with her.
The Finale
The finale of this season of The Bachelor aired Monday, March 15th, and fans already knew what to expect. Matt ended up giving Rachael the final rose Rachael, wanting to be with her but not ready to marry her. Matt had no clue that Rachael was a part of a plantation-themed party until the show was already filmed.
We then have the final rose ceremony where The Bachelor gets to talk to the women he recently sent home. We’ve seen him talk to the last woman he eliminated, Michelle Young. Matt also decided that he didn’t want to pursue a relationship with Rachael at the final rose ceremony. New host, Emmanuel Acho, and Matt were questioning Rachael about what she did and held her accountable for her actions.
This season of The Bachelor ended well. Anyone that was involved with racists acts was held accountable. Additionally, anyone that was either the bully or the bystander was held accountable. Although Matt didn’t find love as he expected, two contestants will be getting their own season of The Bachelorette.
Katie Thurston will be The Bachelorette this summer and Michelle Young will be The Bachelorette this Fall. We’re excited to see a strong, intelligent Black woman on our screens finding love and not taking any B.S.
Tell us what you guys thought about this season of The Bachelor and your expectations for the next seasons of The Bachelorette in the comments!
