CHILEEE…Lets Talk About Digital Blackface
Anecdote: “Period Ahh, Period Uhh”
About a month or two ago, I was on my way home from the endeavors of the evening when I was called onto a Facetime video chat with three of my close friends. In the midst of conversing about, as always, absolutely nothing, a friend of ours on the chat wanted to share (what was deemed to be) a funny Tiktok video of sorts that she had stumbled upon earlier that day. We all consecutively received a text linking the reel, and, once clicked, were lead to a video that had, to my surprise, racked up millions of views, likes, and comments:
It was a video of, what appeared to be, a white woman (probably in her late teens), in a bedroom, attempting (heavy on the attempting) to “rap” to some beat playing in the background. In the video, the influencer is seen wearing extremely long eyelash extension, acrylic nails, costume rings on all visible fingers, and a crimped blond wig. She commences the video with stating (what I am guessing is) her online influencer name, then eats up the however-many seconds of the video obnoxiously repeating the phrase “PERIOD AH, PERIOD UH”.
…………………Lord.
Cue the cringe.
The style of choice. The vocals. The hand movements. I have never watched something so cringy in all of 2022 until that very moment. Woyyyyyy. Honest to God. Honest-to-My-Lord-&-Savior. Y’all…the entire ordeal was just SO CRINGY. And to make matters worse, the reaction to the video was laughter.
Continuous laugher.
(Quick note: This is no shade to any of my friends, I love them to the absolute death of me. Some may find me just as guilty for even clicking the video to begin with. Evidently, regardless of how we all got to that point, I just have to keep it real: it was edge-snatchingly, no Got2Be glue, cringy.)
You know why the entire ordeal was cringy?
It was because this girl was (inadvertently? I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt for now) mimicking women of color.
This statement is not up for debate. As always: I said what I said. And I’m sticking to it.
I actually felt myself getting angry. My anger was not strictly directed to my friends, nor the Tiktok platform (because, at the end of the day, we all have freedom of speech, and people will/can post whatever they want; Tiktok is just the doorknob to the home), but society, for yet-again openly accepting black women to be the midpoint of every race-centered and race-related joke. It is discouraging, dehumanizing, and completely unacceptable. How many times do we have to take on a role of some Harvard professor and explain ourselves? I am certain no black girl has ever never volunteered to be a spokesperson for all black people, but somehow, someway, we get placed in situations where the mike has to be held up to the mouth.
My heritage, my ancestry, and my history is far from being a comedy special.
I ended up interjecting the giggles in the car with a question:
“Have you heard of digital blackfacing?”
What is Blackface?
Blackface is, in the physical sense, (note how I am using present tense, because the act of blackfacing is still very much alive) the theatrical practice of painting ones face with a dark-brown or charcoal-looking substance (EX. paint, makeup, shoe polish) to mimic the appearance of someone of the black race. The practice can also be followed by acting and/or role-playing a person of color. Blackface aims to mock and ridicule black people for a non-person-of-color’s entertainment.
Blackface, I just recently learned, dates back as far as the 15th century. Its misrepresentation of black people is firmly rooted in slavery, and pulls common black stereotypes into the arts internationally: although popularity stemmed largely in the United States, many countries in the 1800s and 1900s were implementing blackface in entertainment, media, and even advertising. Contrary to popular belief:
- Black and BIPOC can also unfortunately be perpetrators of blackface; race and the act of blackfacing are not mutually exclusive.
- Blackface has no timespan; it can be committed in the present or future.
- Blackface is not firmly based on appearance: mimicking a POC vocally, in build/athleticism, or in any other way, can also be deemed as participating in blackface.
Now, with the last point being said:
What is Digital Blackface?
This definition is a little tricky, because this term was not coined until the rise of reels, videos, and the live feature on social media, so I want to be meticulous in how I personally am explaining it.
Digital Blackface is:
- (1) the act of producing media of any kind that mimics, impersonates, appropriates and/or acts out stereotypes geared towards BIPOC by a non-POC
- (2) the usage. sharing, posting, and/or distribution of media of any kind that mimics, impersonates, appropriates and/or acts out stereotypes geared towards BIPOC on a digital platform by a non-POC
Media on a digital platform includes, but not limited to: video, audio (i.e. a voice note, music, etc.), memes, GIFs, and photography. By definition, the usage of this media is specific in trying to explain an event, situation, state, or emotion.
I did not truly learn what Digital Blackface was until the dawn of the COVID-19 pandemic; people, including myself, had more time to rummage online, and social media was one of the very few things we all utilized to occupy the abundance of free time with.
This video below by Felice Leon (love her) of The Root is what actually sparked my interest in learning more about the disturbing practice:
Please do take a watch; it is quite informative.
Why is Digital Blackface Problematic?
Simple:
- It co-opts black identity. — It allows non-POC to have a voice in the black experience. It robs POCs of their voices and their ability to be self-expressive.
- It supports bigotry. — Digital Blackface stimulates an environment rooted in prejudice and perpetuates everything but inclusion and belonging.
- It paints a monolithic picture of black people. — BIPOC come in all shapes, sizes, heights, personalities, and characters: we are all different, and remain individualistic beings. Blackface tells otherwise.
A 2022 article posted by Womens Health describes the media guilty of black-fishing as “ typically overly-animated, loud, aggressive, angry, hypersexual”. A.k.a: all the things that POC are negatively and incorrectly seen as through a societal lens.
Digital Blackface is largely seen on Tiktok, a platform in which almost half of daily users are between the ages of 18 and 24 years old. This age range is pivotal in the fact that these young adults are the absolute key to change. Imagine this: if a large percentage of this age range of people within the US are sharing media that is essentially flat-out racist, how do you think the next generation of influencers and information seekers will turn out to be?
Now, I know some folk gon’ come for me like Ike did Tina. Frankly, don’t come for me if I didn’t send for you.
Lol. Let me stop.
Anyways: I am answering a few question that I personally inquired myself when doing my own research.
Q: Are you saying I cant use memes and GIFs with black people in it?
No, not at all. I obviously am not the President of the Black Twitter/FB/IG Delegation (or of any delegation for all I know), so I cannot say. I would just use your best judgement before posting and sharing things online. Try to find alternatives that best relate to your own cultural experience(s), and not one of underrepresented groups.
Q: Are you saying I can not make a funny video that JUST so happens to be about POC?
If you are fine with perpetuating black stereotypes, go right ahead, Billy.
Q: My (black) friend gave me permission to create/share/repost, and its honestly funny. How is it not ok?
Is your black friend the voice of reason for all POC? One thumbs-up of support does not give you permission to digitally chastise an entire group of people. It’s not funny. At all.
Q: What do I do if I see someone partaking in digital blackface?
I would do what any good human would do: speak up and say something! I have come to realize, a lot of the time, people truly just are not aware of certain wrongdoings. Pull them aside (if you can), and explain why their action(s) are contributing to this negative practice. Educating one other makes the world go ‘round!
Period-ahh period-uhh, period-BYE FELICIA!
