“Scrubs” BFFs Zach Braff and Donald Faison spoke to Kelly Clarkson on her show Monday about racism and the Black Lives Matter protests.
Braff admitted that even though he grew up in a diverse neighbourhood and is best friends with a Black man, that isn’t enough.
“That having been said, I think this conversation is new for me in a sense, because as I’m listening to everyone who’s speaking, I know that I, too, have lots to learn. It’s not enough to just say, ‘Oh, my best friend is a Black man.’ It’s not enough to say, ‘Oh, I grew up with a diverse population.'”
“I can’t just sit back and go, ‘Oh no, I’m cool, I have a Black best friend.’ That’s BS,” he continued. “There’s plenty of ways that I haven’t been proactive in my own life and my own privilege, and I’m really learning that now. I’m taking this opportunity to really listen and to really learn and to see how I can improve my way of being as well.”
Faison added of his experience with racism, “It’s very, very scary to be judged by the colour of your skin. It’s happened to me quite a bit my whole life. Even how people describe me on ‘Scrubs’. I’m the Black guy from ‘Scrubs’. You know, I’m not even one of the actors, I’m the Black guy from ‘Scrubs’.”
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The actor shared, “When you’re a kid, you don’t look at colour. Your friends are your friends. It’s not until your parents get into your head or outside influences get into your head and tell you that people are different than you are.
“I encourage everyone who is not a minority or not a person of colour to really learn about people of colour by listening and doing your research.”
Insisting “racism is everywhere, it’s always been here”, Faison continued: “Once you don’t take that for granted and you recognize that there’s racism out there, you’ll start checking yourself.
“It’s not just about police brutality. It’s also about equal rights. It’s about everyone being able to live in America the way everyone else does.
“Walking into a store and getting your bag checked? That doesn’t even faze me anymore because I’m used to it.”
