*Rachel Lindsay opened up about the pressures of being ABC’s first black “Bachelorette” during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
“I’m not choosing a man for America, I’m choosing a man for me,” said the 31-year-old lawyer from Nick Viall’s season of “The Bachelor.” Last month, ABC made history by announcing her as the first African American to hand out roses in the show’s 33 seasons.
“To be the first African American woman is a beautiful thing,” she told THR. “I’m honored and humbled to be the one chosen. Because that’s how I feel: like I was chosen to be in this role.”
Though production has yet to begin on her season, which typically airs in the spring, Lindsay now faces the potential pressure of breaking a second racial barrier if her final role went to an African American man.
“That is a very common question that I get from black people,” she said when speaking to THR at the taping of the “Women Tell All” reunion special, which also aired Monday night. “Honestly, I don’t want to go into this process with any preconceived notions or any pressures to do something for somebody else. I hate to sound selfish, but it’s my process.”
The civil defense litigation attorney from Texas continued: “It’s my journey in finding love. And whether that person is black, white, red, whatever — it’s my journey. I’m not choosing a man for America, I’m choosing a man for me.”
“I know there are going to be people who criticize what I do no matter what, but I’m just trying to not get caught up in it,” she added. “I feel like it was meant to be and that outweighs any fear or pressure that I have in being the first African-American Bachelorette.”
