This year, several celebrities have faced extreme backlash for their comments about America’s race issues—and Gabrielle Union has had enough of the “white girl privilege.” In a lengthy interview with Harper’s Bazaar, Gabrielle spoke candidly about her thoughts on “white privilege” and her hopes to educate female celebrities who don’t appear to understand the full extent of their privilege.
During her interview, Gabrielle called out celebrities who are guilty of perpetuating the “white girl privilege” narrative. Such stars include Lena Dunham, Amy Schumer and Kate Upton. Amy faced intense backlash after she recreated Beyoncé’s “Formation” video. Considering that Bey’s track and music video outline her identity as a black woman, as well as black culture, it’s understandable that people were outraged by Amy’s insensitivity. The fact that she thought it was acceptable to recreate Beyoncé’s music video further shows “white girl privilege” in full effect.
Kate Upton faced criticism a few months ago, when she chided Colin Kaepernick for kneeling during the national anthem, as a way to take a stance against police brutality and racial inequalities. “Sitting or kneeling down during the national anthem is a disgrace to those people who have served and currently serve our country,” Kate wrote on Instagram.
As as black woman who has faced a decent amount of racism, Gabrielle can no longer sit on the sidelines and let privileged white stars speak about issues they don’t fully understand. In fact, Gabrielle admitted that she has felt “hyper-visible or invisible on sets.”
For Gabrielle, the race issue is one that also affects her children. “They have their own phones,” she said. “They ask logical questions and there’s no rhyme or reason—you can’t make your children feel any safer by saying it was just random.”
“Just their physical presence puts them in danger, because their blackness has been criminalized,” Gabrielle added.
The outspoken actress has already made an effort to educate such celebrities on their white privilege. She confirmed that she spoke to Lena, but she hopes that more discussions with other stars will “help to explain the oppressive systems that have benefited and allowed them to say these careless, insensitive and offensive things.”
Preach, Gabrielle. Preach.