Kareem Abdul-Jabbar says “The Bachelor” franchise is killing romance in America, and he makes some very solid points
We love The Bachelor franchise as much as the next person (could there be a better way to spend an evening after a long day of work?), but Kareem Abdul-Jabbar just said The Bachelor is killing romance in America, and, well, he made some pretty amazing points.
You know we’re all about self-love and confidence, so Kareem’s opinion on the impossible beauty standards set by The Bachelor and shows like it struck a definite chord with us.
“These shows promote the scorched-earth effects of raising females to be continually judged physically above all other attributes and then measured against impossible physical standards that has marginalized a majority of girls and women — and made billions for the beauty products, clothing, and cosmetic surgery industries,” the former NBA star, 69, wrote in an essay for The Hollywood Reporter.
Wow. Just, wow.
“Just as some experts blame the porn industry for establishing sexual shenanigans that make millennials feel too inadequate to pursue sex, so this network romance porn may set the bar for falling in love so low that only divorce attorneys and Ashley Madison subscribers can endorse it,” Kareem continued.
The latest season of the show has more diversity than in past years, but Kareem pointed out that past seasons have been definitely disappointing in that area as well.
Read Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s full essay for THR here. The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC — just remember, it’s entertainment — not a healthy model for the realities of actual love and dating!
