The ABCs of The Bachelor... I is for Interracial Relationships

As a quick follow-up to last week's blog post, did anybody else notice that we didn't hear more than two words from Ashley S. on this week's episode of The Bachelor? I think she said one word when her name was called on the date card, and another when her name was called for a rose at the rose ceremony. Other than that... girl was silent! I don't know what to make of this lack of air time. Did ABC realize that they were treading on some pretty thin ice? Was Ashley I.'s break down enough drama for this episode? I guess the saga continues and we'll have to wait and see what happens next episode.

Now, on to the main topic of this post... The Bachelor(ette) and interracial relationships. If you're a discerning viewer (I consider myself in this camp), you've probably noticed that most seasons of The Bachelor(ette) have few men or women of color*. You've also probably noticed that these individuals, despite generally being attractive, intelligent, and interesting, usually do not make it very far in the competition. Case in point from this season, Amber. As I mentioned, I am in a Bachelor Fantasy League. My cynicism led me to select Amber as my off pick due to the aforementioned pattern. I anticipated that Amber would be shown the door, and I was correct. Some may say it's because she was a bit presumptuous suggesting that she and Chris pretend they're dancing at their wedding, but this suggestion can be shot down as Chris was also pretending to be engaged to Whitney on this week's episode. Some may say she's just not his type, but then why was he playing tonsil hockey with her mere hours before he said au revoir. I'm not exactly sure why Chris (or the producers) decided to give Amber the boot, but I think there's something larger at play here.

Two scenarios:

1 - (this one has evidence to substantiate my claims) We, as a society, are not over our aversion to miscegenation despite the landmark case Loving v. Virginia being 48 years in our collective past. Banks (2007) discusses the sex asymmetry tied to low intermarriage of black women, stating, "The most noteworthy feature of the post-Loving period is not the increased intermarriage of African-American men, but the sustained low intermarriage of black women, especially in light of the demise of antimiscegenation laws and the increased opportunity for interracial contact" (p. 533-4). Given that intermarriage and interracial relationships are still frowned upon by some in our society, Lehmiller and Agnew's (2006) finding that "individuals who perceived greater disapproval of their relationships had significantly lowers levels of commitment, suggesting that perceptions of marginalization was a significant predictor of commitment above and beyond the well-established effects of satisfaction, alternatives, and investments" (p. 48) is particularly relevant to the pattern of men and women of color not making it past the initial rounds on The Bachelor(ette). It is plausible that Chris, a farmer from a rural community, anticipated that others in said community wouldn't approve of his relationship with Amber when he decided to say sayonara.

2 - (this one is my cynical hunch) The show's producers want to demonstrate that they/the network is somehow above society's racist tendencies and so they rig the competition so that the participants of color stay a few episodes until they get the boot, making it look like The Bachelor(ette) simply had stronger feelings for the other participants. A bit of a concession technique to appease any viewers that happen not to be white.

Examples (Given Banks' findings about sex asymmetry, I will focus on examples from the three most recent seasons of The Bachelor):
1) Amber from Chris Soules' season was sent home on episode 3.
2) Chantel from Juan Pablo's season was sent home on episode 3.
3) Victoria from Juan Pablo's season was sent home on episode 2 because she was extremely intoxicated - not a great example.
4) Danielle from Juan Pablo's season was sent home on episode 5 - an interesting contrast to Chantel as Danielle had much lighter skin.
5) Robyn from Sean Lowe's season** was sent home on episode 5.
6) Ashley H from Sean Lowe's season was sent home on episode 1.
7) Brooke from Sean Lowe's season was sent home on episode 2.
8) Leslie H from Sean Lowe's season was sent home on episode 4.

Based on this sample, the average number of women of color on these three seasons of The Bachelor is 2.667 and the average episode of departure is 3.125. I'm not entirely sure what to make of these "statistics," so I'll give you some more... The average number of women on these three seasons is 27.667, making the average percentage of women of color 9.6%. According to Kerby (2012), "women of color comprise 36.3 percent of our nation's female population." Therefore, shouldn't the number of women of color on our television shows, including reality TV like The Bachelor, be representative of the larger population? Food for thought. On the other hand, maybe women of color are just smarter than us white girls... they've figured out that the best way to fall in love is most certainly NOT on public television with 26.667 other women. If so, kudos!

Notes:
*The lack of women of color on the Bachelor may be explained by Childs' (2005) findings. Her interviewees suggested that "interracial relationships are a sign that one is removed from African American communities" (p. 551). Since there is an application process to be on a show like The Bachelor, and these women are participating of their own free will, it is plausible that many women of color do not consider applying due to an intragroup stigma attached to dating a white man (which almost all of the Bachelors are). Childs also suggests that white racism plays a role in Black women not dating white men. One interviewee stated, "If whites still think you're inferior, why would I or any Black person want to be with one?" (p. 551).
**I didn't watch Sean Lowe's season, so I really don't know if there were extenuating circumstances surrounding any of these women's departures. I must say, I am impressed at the above-average diversity present in his season's participants, even the winner/his wife Catherine has Filipino heritage!

References:
Banks, R.R. (2007). The aftermath of Loving v. Virginia: Sex asymmetry in African-American intermarriage. Wisconsin Law Review, 533-542.
Childs, E.C. (2005). Looking behind the stereotypes of the "angry Black woman": An exploration of Black women's responses to interracial relationships. Gender & Society 19(4), 544-561.
Lehmiller, J.J. & Agnew, C.R. (2006). Marginalized relationships: The impact of social disapproval on romantic relationship commitment. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 32(1), 40-51.
Kerby, S. (2012, July 17). The state of women of color in the United States: Although they've made incredible strides, many barriers remain for this growing population. Center for American Progress. Retrieved from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/report/2012/07/17/11923/the-state-of-women-of-color-in-the-united-states/

The ABC's of the Bachelor... A is for Ableism

I have a confession to make. ABC's reality dating show, The Bachelor, and it's female counterpart, The Bachelorette, are a guilty pleasure of mine. I belong to a Bachelor fantasy league (BFL) with some fantastic individuals who share in this guilty pleasure, but are otherwise amazing scholars. I'll speak for myself here, but I'm sure this also applies to many of my BFL colleagues... this television series is riddled with things to be critical of in the name of social justice, and while I savor those Monday night moments watching 30 women fight over one man, I also think it's a useful exercise to consider the implications of how ABC portrays the individuals on the show.

As I said, there are many issues that I could discuss with respect to The Bachelor. To name a couple, the lack of contestants of color (maybe one or two per season, out of a pool of 30), or the overwhelming sexism (for those of you that watched last night's episode, girls being forced to walk down a busy LA street in their bikinis... what was that?!). This isn't to negate any moments of "brilliance" that the show has also demonstrated, namely during Juan Pablo's season when women like Andi and Claire spoke out against Juan Pablo's treatment of women, Claire bringing to light the slut shaming that had occurred at her expense.

These issues aside, last night's episode was shocking to me for more than the bikini-clad street walking... the show's portrayal of Ashley S. If you're familiar with the show, you know that there is always that one woman who every viewer suspects is allowed to stay in order to bring the drama for ratings. From the first two episodes of the season, it appears as though Ashley S. is going to be that woman. However, her "drama" seems different than that of past women who have filled this role on the show (e.g., Michelle Money from season 15). During the season premiere, Ashley S. is shown picking a pomegranate she has confused with an onion during a monologue comparing another girl on the show to an onion that you would cut to see the different layers. During the second episode, paint gun-wielding Ashley S. is shown barely coherent, having a conversation with Chris that even he admits he couldn't follow. This is all done at her expense as the other girls laugh and joke about how Ashley S. shouldn't be trusted with the paint gun.

At this point it's uncertain what is causing Ashley S.'s lack of coherence. It's also uncertain whether this is scripted, put on, or if it is, in fact, real. If it's scripted, ABC needs to learn how to make jokes that don't involve calling someone crazy. If it's a persona that Ashley S. is putting on (in my opinion, the least likely of these three scenarios, but I'll entertain it for a moment nonetheless), ABC, as the network responsible for putting these scenes on television, should know better than to allow it. However, if it's real, ABC ought to be getting her some help rather than making her the butt of the joke on national television. No matter which scenario rings true, The Bachelor is treading on some pretty shaky grounds in terms of engaging in ableism. The fact that guns were involved on the group date adds major insult to injury given the countless instances mental illness overlapping with gun violence in our nation's recent history. As the rest of the season unfolds, we will hopefully get some answers and maybe, just maybe, Ashley S. will get the help she needs. Stay tuned!