Jada Pinkett Smith is talking about race on Red Table Talk. In the newest episode, which aired on Monday (Nov. 12), Pinkett Smith discussed her relationship with white women growing up and how she used to be “triggered” by them.
During the episode, Jada admitted to having biases against white women, particularly those with blonde hair. “Blonde hair on white women just triggers me,” the Girls Trip actress stated. “I’ve had to catch myself.”
Her mother, Adrienne Banfield-Jones then chimed in, asking if there was a specific experience that prompted her feelings. “Absolutely,” Jada replied. “All throughout my childhood. I do remember experiencing being teased by white women in regards to my hair, how I looked, feeling belittled.”
She continued: “I was going to do an interview with this blonde woman and I thought twice about it. I thought, ‘I don’t know if I want to do that.’ That was my first instinct because of how she looked! And I was like, ‘Oh! That’s no different.'”
Despite her initial reaction, Pinkett Smith said that she realized her opinions were somewhat unfounded. “That doesn’t give me the right to clump all blonde women in one,” she added. “And look at me, I got blonde hair. It’s no different than you getting robbed by a black guy once and now you’re saying all black dudes are thieves and dangerous.”
Jada also invited Red Table Talk’s producer Annie Price to have a seat at the table to discuss other aspects of race and privilege. “Any time I want to have a conversation [about race] I’m afraid I’m going to offend somebody just by starting to talk,” Price said. “I feel like I’m going to say the wrong thing.”
In the end, Pinkett Smith urged black and white women to start a dialogue between one another and end biases. “[There is] something unique about why black women and white women have such a difficult time [talking to each other],” Jada continued. “We, even as black women, have to be willing to look at our biases that keep us from being able to bridge the gap.”
Watch the full episode of Red Table Talk below.
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