Jada Pinkett Smith defends including 18-year-old daughter Willow in domestic violence talk

Jada Pinkett Smith was forced to defend her parenting skills after some fans were upset because she included 18-year-old daughter Willow in a domestic violence discussion.

Jada believes it is extremely important to include the younger generation in important discussions. On Wednesday, the 47-year-old actress defended herself at her Red Table Talk discussion after receiving massive backlash after she included her daughter, Willow, in an episode dealing with domestic violence.

"A lot of people were talking about the idea of having Willow at the table and talking about this subject matter. I just need for people to understand that Willow’s not always at the table to talk about experiences or to act as an expert of any kind, but as a student because her mother and her grandmother have gone through a lot of things in life and it’s really about her hearing about our experiences and us being open to understanding what is happening in her life as well.” said Smith

Despite the criticism, Smith discussed the importance of involving the younger generations in discussions. She reasons that they may find themselves in similar situations as they grow and they should know how to deal with the situation.

"This is a conversation. And I think it’s important that we understand and I hope that we can be even more inclusive in our own families with our young adults, because that’s how we learn. It’s called prevention as well.” said Smith

Jaden's mother, Smith noted, with her mother, Adrienne Banfield-Norris backed her up by using statistics to prove their point. She stated that roughly 1.5 million high schoolers in the United States admit to being “intentionally hit or physically harmed in the last year by someone they are romantically involved with.”

The Red Table discussion topic came about because it was "one of the most requested topics" on Smith's Facebook Watch talk show "Red Table Talk." Smith delved into conversations about domestic violence and abusive relationships with mother Adrienne Banfield-Jones and daughter Willow Smith.

During the talk, she opened up about an "abusive" experience with an ex. She was forced to arm herself during the experience because she had feared for her life.

The talk that occurred earlier in the week also saw a very emotional and involved, Adrienne opening up about her physically abusive relationship with Smith’s late father, Robsol Pinkett, Jr.

The discussion had left both Smith and her mother in tears. Together they recalled her father’s alleged violent tendencies when drinking and supported each other as they relived the memories.

The show has always focused on hard-hitting and controversial topics including racist thoughts about white women ― blondes in particular ― and a past sex addiction.