Taraji P. Henson is the latest Black celebrity who is considering a move abroad. The 50-year-old actor opened up to People Magazine, saying she’s tired of fighting.
“I’m really considering getting up out of here, leaving and living in another country,” she stated on the People Every Day podcast when questioned about how she’s been coping with the difficult political and social climate in America.
Henson says the pressure of being Black and what seems like an ongoing fight for equality and justice is why she’s exhausted.
“I just don’t want to have to do another hashtag … I fought, I chanted, I marched. I’m tired,” she adds. “That’s something that comes with 50, you get tired of fighting. I’m tired.”
The 51-year-old didn’t say exactly where she would live abroad but one can easily assume Italy.
“I want to go where there’s neutral ground,” says Henson. “I want to just be. And be happy. I want to be called ‘Bella’ every day, drink wine, and swat flies on the porch. Stress-free.”
The Italian word Bella translates to beautiful.
People Magazine reports that while no dates or country has been selected just yet, she is looking forward to a girls trip with another Black queen.
“Me and Mary J. Blige have been trying to do this trip for so long but our schedules just keep getting crazy. I just told her, ‘Look, enough is enough; I need a vacation!'”
Joining Other Black Celebrities Wanting To Live Abroad
Henson is the latest artist to voice her concerns about being Black in America.
Jill Scott also said she was considering moving abroad because she fears raising her teenage son in the U.S., especially as he approaches the age when he can start driving.
“It’s terrifying because it doesn’t matter if you have, or you don’t. All that matters is that you’re brown. That’s it,” Scott told Jemele Hill on her Unbothered podcast. “Just to know that he will be on the road, just to know that he will be away from people that love him in a world that will decide whether he’s guilty of something because he’s brown. That’s terrifying. It makes me consider leaving this place often.”
Scott, however, did hint that she would consider The Netherlands.
“We like Holland. They’re chilling,” she told Hill. “They have great healthcare, they ride their bikes everywhere … people are pretty fit. They speak more than Dutch. Most people […] speak three or four different languages. That’s dope. It’s below sea level, so, the food is well-hydrated.”
