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Bachelorette’s Rachel Lindsay Opens Up About Attending ‘Peaceful’ Protest for George Floyd: ‘It Hit Me So Hard’

Rachel Lindsay and her husband, Bryan Abasolo, joined thousands of other people across the U.S. who protested the death of George Floyd over the weekend.

Related: Stars Protest George Floyd's Death

The former Bachelorette, 35, detailed what she witnessed in Miami during the Sunday, May 31, episode of her “Higher Learning” podcast.

“I heard beautiful speeches,” Lindsay told her cohost, Van Lathan, of attending a march on Saturday, May 30. “It was beautiful to see so many people in unity marching and protesting for what they believed in and the injustices they’re facing in this country.”

Rachel Lindsay Speaks About Beautiful George Floyd Protest
Rachel Lindsay Broadimage/Shutterstock

Despite feeling positive during the protest — which was one of many held across the U.S. and worldwide in support of the Black Lives Matter movement — the reality star was saddened to see how some people were “completely unbothered” outside of the event.

She explained that she crossed over a bridge and it was like, “It’s just another day to pull out the yachts. It’s just another day for you to have drinks with your friends.”

Related: Beauty Brands Taking a Stand Against Systemic Oppression in Solidarity With the Black Lives Matter Movement

That moment took the Texas native aback and again put things in perspective.

“It hit me so hard,” she said on the podcast. “It’s just such a harsh reality that what we deal with and what other people don’t have to deal with because it doesn’t directly affect them.”

Lindsay, who made history as the first black woman to lead The Bachelorette in 2017, revealed that as a member of Bachelor Nation, she feels a “burden” to use her platform to bring attention to social injustice and racial discrimination.

“One of my purposes for being part of this franchise — that I never knew anything about before — is for a time like this, to speak to an audience that I never really would have had that opportunity to before,” she explained.

She noted that “my audience on social media does not look like me,” and is made up of white women. “I have a lot of people who are looking at me,” Lindsay said.

The “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast cohost shared her journey over the weekend alongside her husband by posting a photo to her Instagram Story.

Related: Stars Arrested While Protesting

“Today we protested,” she wrote on Saturday. “Today we went beyond our platform. Today we put action behind our words. Today we used our voice to make a difference. Today is just one day in the fight. We have to keep pushing forward and demanding change.”

Lindsay is one of many stars who has shown support for the Black Lives Matter movement by protesting, donating and speaking out following Floyd’s death while in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. Blake Lively, Chrissy Teigen and more celebs have been vocal about racial injustices amid calls for all the officers involved in the incident to be arrested and charged.

For more information, visit Blacklivesmatter.com.

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