Actress Aisha Dee took to Instagram on Wednesday, July 15, and spoke out for what’s important. The Freeform star — who plays Kat Edison, one of the three main characters on The Bold Type — penned a powerful statement and opened up about the lack of diversity on the show’s creative team.

“Knowing the power that art had to shape my mind and experience, I had to speak up,” the 26-year-old started her lengthy statement, before going on to explain how being cast on The Bold Type changed her life. “For the first time in my career, I got to play a character who was centered in her own narrative. She wasn’t just the white character’s ‘best friend.’ She was empowered and confident, she approached the exploration of her queer identity with an open heart, and was met with nothing but love and acceptance from her friends. Kat Edison: unapologetic, outspoken, brave, the woman I always wished I could be.”

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After sharing that she’s “proud” to be on a show that “has inspired” and “pushed boundaries,” Aisha explained that she decided to be like her character and “take a stand and advocate for herself and all over marginalized voices to influence change.”

She added, “I am ready to push harder and speak louder for what matters to me: The diversity we see in front of the camera needs to be reflected in the diversity of the creative team behind the camera.”

Throughout the show’s four season on the air, she explained that it took two seasons before a BIPOC writer was on the show. She also said it took three seasons to get a hair stylist that could work with “textured hair,” and only one Black woman directed two out of the show’s 48 episodes. She went onto address her character’s most recent “confusing” relationship with a “privileged conservative woman” and explained that she was “critical” about The Bold Type because she cares and has “seen firsthand the incredible impact of this show.”

Concluding her statement, Aisha shared that she started conversations with writers, producers and executives at Freeform and Universal TV.

“I’m hopeful we will have the opportunity to tell more authentic stories by hiring, promoting and listening to diverse voices across the entire production of The Bold Type and beyond,” the star said.

Following her Instagram post, the producers, Freeform and Universal Television thanked Aisha for speaking out in a statement to Us Weekly.

“We applaud Aisha for raising her hand and starting conversations around these important issues. We look forward to continuing that dialogue and enacting positive change,” the statement read. “Our goal on The Bold Type is and has always been to tell entertaining, authentic stories that are representative of the world that Kat, Jane and Sutton live in — we can only do that if we listen.”

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