The actress is now the mother of three children, including two adopted children. Following the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, Katherine Heigl opened up about raising her children and deconstructing her white privileges.
“My white bubble, although still with me, is now starting to bleed”, she wrote on Instagram. "It has taken me far too long to truly internalize the reality of the heinous and perverse truth of racism."
The 42-year-old actress is a mother of three: Adalaide, 12, who was adopted at birth in the United States, Naleigh, 8, who was adopted in South Korea and finally her youngest son Joshua, born of her union with her husband, Josh Kelley.
Film actress, Host
born 24/11/1978
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Katherine Heigl had never discussed racism with her daughters or even her Korean-born sister Meg. "But when I asked my sister if she had been a different way when she was in public with our parents and a different way when she was alone without them, she said, 'Oh yeah, everyone. time!", remembers the star.
Indeed, the young woman opened her eyes at the time of the resurgence of the American movement Black lives matter to fight against systemic racism, following the murder of George Floyd by the police. “It made me realize that I had been so naive”, she confides."Because I grew up with adoption, looking beyond skin color was the norm for me and I just believed that love is love – no matter what we look like."
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“I was blind to those who treated my own sister differently because of the shape of her beautiful almond eyes. Or her beautiful thick hair "
The young woman was also interested in the racism experienced by her daughters and the white privilege she enjoyed without realizing it. “At first I was very angry. But I had to calm down and realize, okay, that's not how I feel. It's about how I have to protect my daughters and prepare them for the world. "
The young woman then decided to talk to her children about racism to awaken them and make them understand that it is a sad reality experienced by many people around the world. She also deconstructed her privileges to better understand her daughters. “My education of inclusiveness, love and compassion felt normal to me. I thought the majority felt like me ”, she says. “I was blind to those who treated my own sister differently because of the shape of her beautiful almond eyes. Or her beautiful thick hair. Or her golden skin. I was a child. For too long ", she concludes.
It is important to discuss this subject with your children, whether it is with simple words or even illustrations so that they can better understand it. And above all, accepting that this reality exists without denying it is already fighting racism.
