Warning: This story contains spoilers from episodes 1-6 Love is blind season 7
Love is blindStephen Richardson talks about his recent discovery of ethnicity.
In the first series of episodes from Season 7, Stephen revealed to Monica Davis in capsules that he has some African roots in his family line after his sister recently took a 23andMe DNA test.
Although Stephen admitted that “I mostly identify as white,” he noted that his father was “three-fifths or half black,” and as a result, he learned more about the cultures of Ghana and Nigeria. Monica seemed to take the news well, telling Stephen it was a “cool experience” for him to “dive in” and learn more.
Speaking to PEOPLE about the revelation now, Stephen, 34, says his family “found it interesting to know,” especially after being told he had Italian roots for most of his life.
“I’ve always known for years, my mom even told me, ‘You’re a mutt, you’ve got everything in you.’ But okay, what does that mean? They told me I was Italian and it was so cool to finally be connected to the culture and not just have, you’re a mix of things,” explains the electrician. “So I grew up so proud, holding on to what little Italian I had, and that I could pretend to claim.”
“That was until my sister created 23andMe [test] and suddenly there is not a drop of Italian in us. We’re all like, ‘Wait, wait, wait, what?’ “, he recalls. “And my grandmother, who told us we were Italians, died three or four years ago and was the only one left from my father’s side. So, just a bunch of questions, no answers. It was very strange.”
Season 7 men enter ‘Love Is Blind’ groups.
Courtesy of Netflix
Love is blind: Stephen reveals a big secret he’s ‘not very proud of’ in Season 7 Pods (Exclusive)
Stephen also says that when he was bartending, people would ask him about his ethnicity – and often suspect that he had some sort of African heritage in his line.
“It’s interesting because I would be bartending in this one area where a lot of African-American people ask me if I’m mixed. An interesting amount,” he notes. “So they usually could tell. Even I was like, I got to the point where I was like, ‘I don’t know, maybe I am.’ ”
“When we found out, I was like, ‘Oh, wow. So there are actually people out there who could see it before I could see it.’ Well, yes, I thought it was interesting,” he adds.
Since the discovery, Stephen says he has been actively researching more about the African cultures his family was connected to.
“I took an African studies course to try and figure some of that out when I was in college because I studied ancient history, I studied Roman and Greek and mostly Italian-European areas because I thought I related to that and I love the history there,” he explains. . “And so when I found out, oh, there’s a whole other side, I said, ‘Well, now I need to know a little bit more about this.’ Especially Nigerian, Ghanaian, Congolese, which is the central part of West Africa where most of the bloodline comes from.”
Love is blindLeo defends ‘fiery’ meltdown about Hannah in capsules: ‘I definitely lost my cool’ (Exclusive)
Despite being proud of his newfound roots, fans started calling him out on social media for it, joking that “the nigerian white king” after Season 7 was dropped.
“Stephen can’t be a real person. What is this white guy talking about?” one user joked, while another wrote: “Stephen on Love Is Blind says he’s Nigerian??? Pls.”
Stephen, meanwhile, responded to the backlash in an Instagram Stories post, captured by The Reality Ashley, announcing the results of his sister’s DNA test, which said their family has 13% sub-Saharan African ancestry.
“This is math for everyone who is mad at me for finding interest in my families [sic] a lineage I’ve never been able to connect with and then I’ve been trying to pay my respects and research more about it…or think I don’t know math,” he wrote below the chart.
Stephen also added: “It’s not much… like at all… but I’m actually really proud of it anyway.”
Love is blindLeo & Brittany Reveal What Really Happened After The Cameras Rolled (Exclusive)
After arguing with Monica in the pods, Stephen proposed and the two became unexpectedly engaged. So far, things seem to be going well for the duo, although Monica got mad at Stephen in Mexico for talking too much and not letting her have a word.
In the next series of episodes, the two will return home to Washington, DC, and integrate their lives as an engaged couple before walking down the aisle on their wedding day and deciding if love really is blind.
Never miss a story — subscribe to PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Episodes 1-6 of Love is blind season 7 is now streaming on Netflix, and episodes 7-9 will air on Wednesday, October 9.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education