During Rossi's interrogation of Charles, the BAU agent claims that he understands Charles' anger over America's history of mistreating Black people because his best friend is Black, as was his second wife. As most should know, having Black friends or relatives is no substitute for actually living the Black experience in America. That said, it's Rossi's next revelation that really burned some bridges.
When Charles asks Rossi if he has ever shown bias or bigotry toward a Black person, Rossi recounts an event from ninth grade when he played for his school's baseball team. Also on the team was a small Black student, whom the rest of the team targeted for harassment. Rossi, who at the time was nearly as small as the Black teammate, was pressured by his team to push the kid into a locker and lock him in overnight. Rossi, fearing that he'd be their target if he didn't follow their direction, locked the boy in the locker, called him names and slurs, and urinated on him.
On Reddit, there are multiple threads discussing the episode, and specifically Rossi's revelation. For some commenters, Rossi's past racism is unforgivable. Others wished the show had delved deeper into that moment in Rossi's youth, perhaps to better frame the disturbing event. Another user wondered if perhaps Rossi exaggerated in his retelling of the incident in order to get under Charles' skin. However, many of the comments note that while Rossi certainly committed a horrific act as a teen, there's been nothing in the 50 years since that indicates he harbors any racist sentiments.
