Jada Pinkett Smith's Mom Adrienne Banfield-Jones 'Upset' Over Olivia Jade Giannulli 'White Privilege'
KEY POINTS
- Adrienne Banfield-Jones was not happy with Olivia Jade Giannulli's appearance on "Red Table Talk"
- The 67-year-old star asked the influencer hard questions about her "white privilege"
- Olivia Jade apologized for the college admissions scandal and shared what she learned from the incident
Jada Pinkett Smith's mom, Adrienne Banfield-Jones, grilled Olivia Jade Giannulli about her "white privilege" in her first interview since her parents reported to prison for their involvement in the college admissions scandal.
On Tuesday, Olivia Jade, 21, appeared on the Facebook Watch talk show, "Red Table Talk," where Banfield-Jones didn't hide the fact that she wasn't happy about the influencer's guest appearance.
Banfield-Jones told her daughter, 49, and granddaughter Willow Smith, 20, that she "fought tooth and nail" to be where she is now, suggesting that their guest has it easy.
"I just found it really ironic that she chose three Black women to reach out to for her redemption story," Banfield-Jones said before Olivia Jade appeared. "I feel like here we are, [a] white woman coming to Black women for support when we don’t get the same from them. Her being here is the epitome of white privilege to me."
As soon as Olivia Jade joined them, the "Bad Moms" star immediately asked the YouTube star if she clearly understands "white privilege."
"Do you have any understanding of why I would be upset at your being here and what you all did and the harm that it caused?" Banfield-Jones asked.
Olivia Jade noted that she understood it and admitted that her parents, Lori Loughlin and fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, got involved in the college bribery scheme partly because "we had the means to do something and we completely took it and ran with it. It really cannot be excused, on paper it’s bad."
Olivia Jade explained that she didn't appear on the show to win people over and instead wanted to "apologize for contributing to these social inequalities even though I didn’t realize it at the time."
Banfield-Jones stressed that the issue was bigger than the influencer and her family. She compared the Black community's fight for equality and equity to what Olivia Jade had gone through.
“I think for me, it’s like there is so much violent dehumanization that the Black community has to go through on a daily basis," she said. "There is so much devastation, particularly this year, 2020, with the pandemic and everything brought to the table about how there is so much inequality and inequity, that when you come to the table with something like this, it’s like, ‘Child, please,'"
Banfield-Jones went on to say that she feels "exhausted" with what the Black community has had to endure and has little "energy" to spare over Olivia Jade losing endorsements or leaving school.
"At the end of the day, you’re gonna be OK, because your parents are gonna go in and they’re going to do their 60 days and they’re going to pay their fine," the 67-year-old star said. "You guys will go on and you’ll be OK, and you will live your life. There’s so many of us that it is not going to be that situation. It makes it very difficult right now for me to care."
During the interview, Olivia Jade spoke about the things she learned from the scandal, including giving herself a second chance.
"To learn from the mistake, not to now be shamed and punished and never given a second chance. I’m 21. I feel like I deserve a second chance to show I’ve grown," she shared of her new outlook.
Loughlin and Giannulli are both are currently serving prison time after pleading guilty to fraud charges in May. The couple was arrested in March last year after being accused of paying $500,000 in bribes to get their two daughters into the University of Southern California.
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