Angelina Jolie: 15-year-old Zahara is 'an extraordinary African woman'
By Kaiser
Angelina Jolie, Zahara Jolie-Pitt
Angelina Jolie adopted Zahara from Ethiopia in 2005. At the time, Jolie was already a single mother to Maddox, but Zahara's adoption was somewhat fraught because Angelina and Brad Pitt were becoming a couple and it was said that they were basically adopting Zahara together. Still, Angelina did adopt Zahara as a single woman and then Brad adopted Zahara later on. As she's done with several of her children, Angelina started a charity in Zahara's name in her birth country. Zahara is now 15 years old and according to Angelina, Zahara is an "extraordinary African woman."
Proud mom Angelina Jolie is "in awe of" her daughter Zahara Jolie-Pitt. The actress, 45, recently sat down for a video interview with Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate for a TIME 100 Talk and praised 15-year-old Zahara as "an extraordinary African woman."
"My daughter is from Ethiopia, one of my children … And I have learned so much from her. She is my family, but she is an extraordinary African woman and her connection to her country, her continent, is her own and it's something I only stand back in awe of," Jolie said of her daughter, whom she adopted in 2005.
In addition to Zahara, Jolie shares Maddox, 18, Pax, 16, Shiloh, 13, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 11, with ex Brad Pitt.
[From People]
What I find interesting is that all of the people who claimed that the Jolie-Pitt kids would turn out to be horrible brats now don't have sh-t to say. I mean, these kids' lives could go in many different directions, but from literally every indication, all of the Jolie-Pitt kids seem well-adjusted, empathetic, engaged and they all seem to adore their mom. I would love to know more about Zahara's connection to Ethiopia and to the continent of Africa, but maybe Zahara will tell us about it herself when she gets a bit older.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid and WENN.
43 Responses to "Angelina Jolie: 15-year-old Zahara is 'an extraordinary African woman'"
Truth hurts says:
Zahara is a beautiful girl. Angie has done a great job with her. Literally!
Mina_Esq says:
God I love her. Such a decent woman raising decent human beings. Angelina is my forever crush. Fun fact: her best friend's sister shares an office with my aunt (city engineers). I'm 3 degrees of Angelina! lol 😝
TeamMeg says:
@Mina_Esq Who is Angelina's best friend?!
whatWHAT? says:
Z has such a radiant smile. I have no doubt that ALL of these kids will grow up to be productive members of society.
LULU wang was robbed says:
She has her mom's smile, right?
I love how kids pick up their parents characteristics
How lovely of yo to notice, it is her mom's smile.
How lovely of you to notice, it is her mom's smile.
Mireille says:
I can't believe Zahara is 15 already. I remember seeing pics of her as a toddler, wearing a mini version of Angie's purple summer dress or carrying a mini version of Angie's white handbag. LOL. I always thought she was Daddy's little girl with those photos of her running around with Brad in Central Park years ago. So cute.
Sayrah says:
I remember a video of Angelina carrying her in an airport I think and she was around 1 year old. She had a jacket with bunny ears on the hood and Angelina kept saying "who's a bunny?" In this silly mom voice. Beautiful girl then and now.
Lunasf17 says:
Angelina truly seems like a wonderful mother! Also Zahara has the best style and I want her to style me. She is so cool!
Zahara was such a beautiful baby. Angelina has done a great job with her kids.
L84Tea says:
I was coming here to say this. She was the MOST beautiful baby!
CatWomen says:
Zaraha's boots and rings are on trend. Jolie is a good mom. She's really invested so much in her family, she must be very proud of them.
Children show who the parents really are.
These children seem well mannered, polite, emphatic, social conscience, educated and well loved.
Angelina has done an amazing job raising 6 different children from different beginnings in life.
Zahara has a wicked dress sense so she should really dress her mother 😂
waitwhat says:
"Children show who their parents really are"??? Tell that to parents of addicted children. Parents who have given everything they've got only to watch their dearest love succumb to drugs. What a dangerously naive statement.
Miss Grace Jones says:
What a bizarre thing to get offended by.
EviesMom says:
I agree – children don't show the world who their parents are. Children are who they are – whether talented or average. I have three kids and their triumphs and challenges are their own. I'm here to support them and guide them but ultimately this is their journey. Some awesome people have garbage parents and some of the most damaged children have the most loving parents.
Girl with the Soup Tattoo says:
Whoa…whoa….whoa. Let's push the brakes on this real quick. @wait I don't know what your story is but just because someone has an addiction does not make them a bad person. I do think children are, to an extent, often a reflection of their upbringing AND, having working with people actively using substances for years, they are still some of the most amazing, beautiful souls. "Addiction" is a biopsychosocial phenomenon, a disease (if you subscribe to that model) and in no way tied to whether someone is or is not a good person or did or did not come from a loving home. There are multiple reasons why someone might struggle with dependence, any of which may have nothing to do with their upbringing. The PA I work with recently lost her son to overdose – most amazing family ever and obviously incredibly educated about substance use. Her son was also a genius, born with some traits that were just very difficult to manage and turned to "self medicating". He was an absolute darling person and despite his passing you could see his mother in him. Not even remotely close to the only story I have.
Um… my son who is brilliant, kind, hilarious, creative, loyal and much more is an addict. And while this is a hard road, I wouldn't trade my son for any other kid out there. So why don't you pump your brakes little girl.
Grace…meh, not worth it.
Thanks for getting it Eviesmom. Nice to hear from someone with experience.
Nina Simone says:
She's growing up to be such a lovely young woman., which is a testament to Angie's parenting. So proud of her and the naysayers, where are y'all now? LOL
Zahara is so beautiful!
Chelly says:
I wish it were that easy for me to just have $1200 boots. Yeah, a little salty
Yup, Me says:
"That easy" meaning you wish you were adopted from your homeland into a family of people who look nothing like you, where your folks were celebrities who traveled frequently and had some major bust up that resulted in your parents divorcing in a very public way?
Or you wish your mom bought you some?
MarJo says:
Oh god. Cant even be salty about a pair of boots w/o someone chiming in with a lecture. Bring it down a notch.
bettyrose says:
Chelly,
This is a site for gossip and escapism. You wanna get serious with that book talk, take it over to the NY Times threads.
*boots.
Eh, either way, AJ's kids live a good life. Who doesn't secretly want her as their mom? (and she's like 2 years younger than me so that would be awkward).
Wow. All @Chelly said is that she wished she could afford to buy boots equal to what Zahara is wearing in the photo. Where is the offense?
babco says:
'My African Child' seems like Mommie Dearest bragging.
It should be for Zahara only to tell what she identifies herself with: an adopted child could very well feel more comfortable with his adoption country and culture; and no teens' personal life should be carelessly put out on the webs for PR anyways.
Let her grow and tell the world who she is, on her own terms on her own time, away from media attention and the pressure of public expectations (even kind-hearted). She is only 15.
This is similarly to how I feel. First of all, Zahara is still a girl, not a woman. Or a young woman I guess but she's not a full-fledged adult. I think Angelina has always done a good job of talking about her children while respecting their privacy so I was surprised to hear her talk so openly about Zahara.
I would love to hear from Zahara and hear what it was like to be adopted into a mostly white family and what her connection to Ethiopia is actually like. Hopefully when she's an adult, she'll feel comfortable talking about it. But for now she's a kid and I get Angelina is proud of her, but I also don't think she should speak for her daughter either.
SaraR. says:
Omg, it was just a chime in the conversation with a young Ugandan enviromental activist. It was not a thought out statement, just two people talking about Africa, environmental problems, girls growing up, activism…
And what did she say that is "so open about Zahara"? That she has a beautiful connection to the place where she was born! Why is that a problem?
enike says:
well said Babco
I'm curious why Zahara would be considered African, not African-American, by her mom. Is the African-American designation strictly for people who are descended from US slaves? P.S. I'm totally coveting Angelina's long black coat, the one that she's wearing in the pics with Zahara rocking her blue and white sleeveless jumpsuit. Two gorgeous gals!
I think African American means you have to be born in America.
Zahara is born in Ethiopia so considered African.
Interesting. My friend adopted a baby from Russia when the baby was 8 months old, and brought her home to Massachusetts. (That baby girl is now almost 30 years old and getting married!) She knows she came from Russia but she considers herself American.
Barak Obama isn't descended from slaves, but he's considered African-American. The big difference is he was born and raised in American culture. I don't know much about Zahara's childhood and where she spent most of her years, but she didn't attend a normal school and do normal "American" kid things, so she may not identify as African-American, as much as an American of African birth and heritage.
@Bettyrose, Zahara was 6-months old when she was adopted and brought to America. She was adopted by an American and raised in America. Wouldn't that make Zee an African-American?
MV says:
Your comments looks really "odd", she didn't do "normal american thing".
The truth is all Angelina Jolie kids grew up abroad. But the issue I have is all her white kids are considered American and the other one not. That's the problem I have with Angelina's comments.
All her kids were adopted by American parents, have the American nationality so they are American. There is nothing to argue with this.
MV. says:
She is American
outoftheshadows says:
Well, they lived in France for much of her childhood, so I think Angelina is talking about her place of origin. These things are difficult to parse when your kids literally have grown up in multiple countries.
Both her parents are American, so I really don't understand why Angelina Jolie consider her as African.
Also, That's not to Angelina to say who she is, but as Zahara to say how she identify.
crogirl says:
She didn't say Zahara isn't American.
If she said she wasn't African people would accuse her of trying to erase her heritage.
Charfromdarock says:
Perhaps that is how Zahara thinks of herself.
AJ does not seem like the type of person to impose a label on another, let alone her own daughter.