The 'Eternals' actress, who adopted Zahara from Ethiopia, recalls a moment when a nurse told her to call them if the 16-year-old's skin 'turned pink' after going under the knife.

• Jun 24, 2021

AceShowbiz - Angelina Jolie has gotten candid about how her eldest daughter experienced bias in the medical system. Revealing that Zahara has undergone surgery, the "Eternals" star claimed that the 16-year-old's care after the procedure depended on her "skin color."

The 46-year-old shared her story when sitting down with Malone Mukwende for Time's interview. "I have children from different backgrounds, and I know when there was a rash that everybody got, it looked drastically different depending on their skin color," she said. "But whenever I looked at medical charts, the reference point was always white skin."

"Recently my daughter Zahara, whom I adopted from Ethiopia, had surgery," the Oscar-winning actress further spilled. "And afterward a nurse told me to call them if her skin 'turned pink.' "

Upon hearing Angelina's revelation, Malone noted that he "started to notice [the bias] very early on" in his medical studies. He then explained, "Almost the entirety of medicine is taught in that way. There's a language and a culture that exists in the medical profession, because it's been done for so many years and because we are still doing it so many years later it doesn't seem like it's a problem."

The 21-year-old, who is on a mission to teach other doctor hopefuls how conditions and diseases can be present in non-white patients, went on to elaborate, "However, like you've just illustrated, that's a very problematic statement for some groups of the population." He concluded, "Because it's just not going to happen in that way and if you're unaware you probably won't call the doctor."

Angelina previously opened up about Zahara's surgery in March. In an essay for Time, she wrote, "I have spent the last two months in and out of surgeries with my eldest daughter, and days ago watched her younger sister go under the knife for a hip surgery."

"They know that I am writing this, because I respect their privacy and we discussed it together and they encouraged me to write," the estranged wife of Brad Pitt continued. "They understand that going through medical challenges and fighting to survive and heal is something to be proud of."

"I have watched my daughters care for one another," she raved. "My youngest daughter studied the nurses with her sister, and then assisted the next time. I saw how all my girls so easily stopped everything and put each other first and felt the joy of being of service to those they love."

In addition to Zahara, Angelina and Brad share Maddox, Pax, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt and twins Knox and Vivienne.