browngirlsgang:

YOU CAN BE BROWN AND ANTI-BLACK: ON LILLY SINGH AND MODERN DAY BLACKFACE

BY MCKENSIE MACK

“White people step in and out of Blackness when it is convenient for them, but this is not just something white people do, non-black people of color like Lilly Singh do it too. 

Last year, Singh made 7.5 million dollars and she didn’t get there alone–she got there through performing a stereotyped version of Black culture and identity.It’s not that different from minstrels of the 19th century. Minstrels were shows that featured white people in blackface playing Black slaves. They portrayed Black people as foolish, lazy, overconfident and less than human. White audiences loved the shit out of it. 200 years later, it’s still happening, but instead of faces painted with black soot we have Black culture used as artistic expression and sold to whomever will buy it. #wack.”

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