Tracee Ellis Ross is slamming societal pressures placed on women to get married and have children. In a new interview with Marie Claire, Ross addressed those antiquated ideas about women needing a marriage and a baby carriage to be worthy.
“Our society spoon-feeds it to you. I used to put myself to sleep dreaming of my wedding,” she said. “And I would still love all of that, but what am I going to do, just sit around waiting? Shut up. I’ve got so many things to do.”
Ross also discussed society’s beauty standards, and opened up about the relationship she’s had with her hair.
“Learning to love my hair in a world that doesn’t mirror that celebration has been a form of both resistance and the claiming of my identity, my selfhood, my legacy, my ancestral lines, the history that I come from,” Ross explained.
Ross channelled that newfound love for her hair and herself into her hair company, Pattern Beauty, which caters to curly, coily and textured hair of all patterns In February, she was named named diversity and inclusion adviser for Ulta Beauty, a position Ross said she accepted “because I want the world to be a better place. And I want Black people to feel really good walking into a retail space.”
With numerous projects in the works and a beauty business under her belt, the Black-ish actress is the busiest she’s ever been and is showing no signs of slowing down.
“At this age, a mistake can be processed as a mistake, not ‘I’m a mistake,'” she told Marie Claire. “This is the beauty of it. I’m 48 years old, and there’s so much more to try.”