On September 10, 2009, the pilot of The CW’s popular drama series The Vampire Diaries, based on a book series by L.J. Smith, was watched by close to five million viewers. American actress, singer, dancer, and model Kat Graham played one of the series main female characters, teenage witch Bonnie Bennet. 

Graham was born in Geneva, Switzerland, on September 5, 1989, and was raised in Los Angeles, California. Her mother, who came from a Russian-Polish Jewish family, raised Graham Jewish . Her father is Americo-Liberian, a Liberian of African American descent. In a 2011 interview with People magazine, Graham said, “In the third grade, I realized I was the only black kid in Hebrew school, But I wasn’t bothered by it. I glorify being different.” 

Graham was only nineteen when the pilot episode of The Vampire Diaries aired and she played Bonnie Bennet until 2017.  As the show grew in popularity, so did Graham, who quickly gained fame as a teen idol. Her character Bonnie is known for her compassion, empathy, and selflessness.  

Being a person of color and Jewish was not always easy on the set. In an interview with the British publication Express, Graham described how she was the only minority on the show and often felt like “the odd man out.” Actor Matt Davis, who played character Alaric Saltzman, expressed insensitive—even racist and antisemitic—comments Fans also condemned the creators for not giving Bonnie a love interest other than her stepbrother, with some saying that this treatment was due to Bonnie being the only person of color on the show. Davis fired back on Twitter, asking sardonically, “Are Jewish people upset about Bonnie’s treatment too?”  

In 2011, Graham won “Choice TV Female Scene Stealer” at the Teen Choice Awards for her role as Bonnie.  

Sources: 

“Kat Graham.” Wikipedia., April 27, 2023. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kat_Graham.  

“Why 'the Vampire Diaries' Treatment of Bonnie Bennett–and Her Fans–Bites.” Oh No They Didn’t, April 13, 2012. https://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/68177742.html.  

Rouse, Sabina. “Vampire Diaries' Kat Graham on Struggle as 'Only Minority' on the Show.” Express.co.uk, September 1, 2022. https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/1663283/vampire-diaries-kat-graham-bonnie-bennett-minority-actress-instagram-news-latest.  

Zuckerman, Blaine. “Kat Graham Yes, I Celebrate Hanukkah.” People, November 10, 2011. https://people.com/archive/kat-graham-yes-i-celebrate-hanukkah-vol-76-no-19/.