Photo by rinat shakirov on Unsplash

Well brava! The Bachelor franchise has been forced into casting yet another black lead. Don’t get me wrong, I’m as happy as the next girl to FINALLY see Tayshia grace our screens in a role that she deserved long before now (especially after suffering through Colton’s terrible make out skills enough to make it all the way to 3rd place).

Anyway, if you’re keeping up with the news in Bachelor Nation you’ll know that Clare Crowley was announced as Bachelorette before the pandemic. Her season was put on hold once COVID broke out but production began a couple of months ago at a resort.

So, we’ve been hearing rumblings for the past week or so that Clare had either found the love of her life after a few weeks or went absolutely nuts and couldn’t finish the season (either way it goes down, I’m ready to see it play out on camera). But seriously, apparently the guy she’s leaving the show for reached out to Clare while the show was on hiatus and things just took off.

Rumors that Tayshia would be her replacement have been circulating for a couple days but it seems like it’s all confirmed now. And I gotta say I was kind of excited but also low key disappointed.

You see, if they were going to make Tayshia The Bachelorette, why didn’t they do it after Colton’s season, or the season after that, or better yet, why did they even name Clare in the first place? If Tayshia was first pick, Clare never would have reentered the conversation from the pedestal she sat on all the way back in prehistoric Bachelor archives. Don’t get me wrong, I truly like Clare but come on, when there are girls (especially girls of color) being looked over just for you to reach allllllll the way back to pick a girl people barely remember, it’s shady and lowkey disrespectful.

So, of course, now that Black Lives Matter has opened up the world’s eyes, ABC is feeling that pressure. They knew they screwed up and are trying to right the wrongs they have done to Tayshia by giving her Clare’s sloppy seconds. It just doesn’t sit right with me.

Of course, I’ll be watching. But I’ve got my eye on you, ABC. Ya’ll ain’t slick.