Kevin Of ‘The Real World’ Still Deserves An Apology — But, White Privilege

MTV first reality show’s interaction between Powell and Rebecca Blasband didn’t change much after 30 years

When the original cast of The Real World appeared on MTV, I was nine years old. And to be honest, back then, I’d usually just change the channel whenever it was on. I was just a kid then, more interested in watching the latest Michael Jackson or Nirvana video instead of “seven strangers picked to live in a house.” The youngest cast member, Julie Gentry, was 19 at the time. That seemed eons away from my life as a fourth-grader. 10/10 could not relate.

Thirty years and a pandemic later, I found myself watching the entire season on Paramount Plus. I relived the O.G. cast living at 565 Broadway, years before I even thought about applying to NYU and walked down the same streets. Now, I could relate to their conversations that went over my head as a kid: Dating, identity, and of course, race.

I can’t say how I would have reacted to seeing that scene play out in 1992. I didn’t have concrete experiences with race yet. All I remember at that age was being scared about my uncle going…