Misty Copeland reflects on the ‘generational trauma’ felt by Black ballet dancers

(CNN) – Misty Copeland has grown used to having the spotlight on her at center stage. In 2015, Copeland sprang into the highest echelons of dance when she became the first African American woman to be a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre, one of the most prestigious and well-renowned dance companies in the world. “I spent the first decade of my professional career with American Ballet Theatre, the only Black woman in the company – a company of almost 100 dancers,” Copeland told CNN’s Chris Wallace in a new episode of Max’s Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace? Related Stories Being the first is a difficult, but familiar position for Copeland, who’s often spent her dance career as one of the only Black dancers in the room or on stage. “I’ve experienced, you know, difficulties being a Black woman when you stand out, especially in the corps de ballet when it’s supposed to look uniform, and everyone kind of in the same tones wearing pink tights, which represent the color of your skin. And that wasn’t always the case.” There were also instances of discrimination that could have easily turned Copeland away from dance all together. “There were times that...