'The Bachelorette' Is Historic For Many Reasons

In a totally unexpected turn of events, big news in Bachelor nation broke after Monday night's episode. It's official: Rachel Lindsay is the next Bachelorette. And, not only is she the franchise's first black woman to take on the role, but she's also breaking age barriers, as well. But is Rachel the oldest Bachelorette ever? Actually, at 31, she is. This girl is breaking the Bach mold in all kinds of ways, and, even though her season is months in the future, I'm already looking forward to seeing how else that statement is true.

Normally, the show's leading lady tends to be on the younger side. In fact, the youngest Bachelorette star ever is a tie between JoJo Fletcher and Ali Fedotowsky, who were both 25 years old when their seasons were filmed. And according to a Dash Of Data, the average age of the Bachelorette is 27, making our girl Rachel above the curve by four whole years.

It's already clear that Rachel's season is going to be unlike any other, and it's so exciting that the show finally cast a black woman who is also breaking age boundaries as well. While she's not "old" by any definition of the word, the more years you live and the more opportunity you have to date, the easier it is for you to pin down exactly what you're looking for in a potential partner. Maybe that'll be an asset to her when her season kicks off?

Either way, I'm so glad to see that ABC is breaking the norms here. Women of all races and ages are looking for love, and they all have different, interesting stories to tell. I'm ready to see Rachel's!