Willow Smith reveals she "internalised" her mother Jada Pinkett-Smith's trauma over racist abuse
30 June 2021, 17:36
Willow Smith shared how her mother, Jada Pinkett-Smith, receiving death threats impacted her.
Willow Smith has discussed her experiences witnessing her mum experience racist and sexist abuse.
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The singer said that she has "internalised" her mothers abusive treatment.
The 20 year old daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett told L'OFFICIEL how her mum's experiences of Racist and sexist abuse impacted her and shaped her perspectives.
Speaking about her own career in the music industry she reflects on her mothers similar experiences, saying: "Some crazy stuff went down when she was touring with her band.”.
Se continued: “My mom got so much hate... It was intense racism and sexism, just packed on to the tens. People giving her death threats, throwing glass at her onstage.".
The singer and actress said: “It was so scary to me, and I think I internalised a little bit.”.
However, the star shared how her mothers experiences have helped her, saying: “Every time I feel that [anxiety] coming on, I just go back to my memories of my mom and how she would deal with actual physical danger—she just rose above it,”.
“Obviously, she was scared" she continued, "but she really showed me what ‘womaning up’ really was, by taking a stance and not being afraid of other people’s judgements and perceptions".
The star concluded saying: "I really wanted to just go within that place in myself and try something new, regardless of what my insecurities were.”
Jada Pinkett-Smith is best known for her acting roles but also used to belong to a band named 'Wicked Wisdom'.
The star now mainly appears on her talk show 'Red Table Talk', which she hosts alongside her mother and daughter.
