Gillian Anderson: 'Black Lives Matter has educated me about my own racism'

Gillian Anderson has recognised she's been "brainwashed" by pervasive racism.

The actress reflected on the Black Lives Matter movement in an interview with Porter magazine, during which she insisted the current political climate is "terrifying" and getting "worse".

"No matter how much work I do for charities, I don't think I'd really ever studied or taken full account of the myriad ways that society works against people of colour and minorities," she said.

Anderson then remarked on: "how endemic (systemic racism) is and how structurally impossible it is for so many to get beyond a certain place."

The Crown star credited the Black Lives Matter movement, which was sparked by acts of police brutality and highlights long-standing institutional bias, for alerting her to her own racism.

"That was the beginning of an education I didn't even know I needed," admitted The X-Files actress.

"I'm learning how brainwashed I feel I (have been) and we are as a society, and how much there is to learn about what needs to systematically change," she explained.

The movement, along with the Covid-19 pandemic, has prompted Anderson to take a step back and re-evaluate her stance on some issues.

She shared: "I have a tendency to try to close my mind against certain things. (But) it is a time to listen."