User:Natediazufc/Identity tourism

Digital blackface refers to when non-black people use the images or voices of black people to describe their own feelings or actions. People use these images to claim aspects of black identity all while not being black themselves. Using these gifs, images and videos of black people can perpetuate stereotypes about black people, Jardin Dogan M.Ed., Ed.S., a counselor and educator specializing in Black mental health, explains. The problematic nature of digital blackface can be traced back to the 19th century when blackface became a popular form of entertainment and white performers would paint their faces black and mimic the portrayal of Black people for all-white audiences. The same stereotypes that paint black men as violent and black woman as hypersexual, are based on minstrel shows, so even though using these images or voices of black people may seem harmless, they just further perpetuate stereotypes of black people. Not only does digital blackface perpetuate stereotypes, it is also a form of cultural appropriation because non-Black people get to take on aspects of "Blackness" that can be shed and taken on whenever and however they please, while not having to deal with any of the consequences that black people do for their race on a daily basis. Digital blackface contributes to identity tourism because people can assume aspects of racial identity for recreational purposes. '''Writer Victoria Princewell, for the BBC News, even said that using black emojis and black gifs as a non-black person was digital blackface. Blackface was originally used to mock black people and over exaggerate stereotypes, therefore she maintains that it is the modern day version of blackface, as it's "White people using gifs to perform some kind of exaggerated blackness." This tradition of using dark makeup to exaggerate the stereotypes of people of darker complexion, has roots that can be traced all the way back to Shakespeare's day, as performers in his plays wore blackface and brown face makeup. Russell Contreras of AP News, wrote about Hollywood actors in the 1950's who used makeup to portray black, Latino and Asian people, and how it hasn't even stopped; In 2012, actor Ashton Kutcher used brown face makeup and an exaggerated Indian accent in a Popchips commercial, showing that stereotypical portrayals of people of color in media is still alive. In 2019, a Mexican TV personality dressed in brown face makeup and wore a fake nose, as they were trying to poke fun at indigenous Mexican actress, Yalitza Aparicio. And in 2014, James Ramsey, who at the time was the president of the University of Louisville, along with staff were photographed wearing sombreros and fake mustaches, possibly related to Hispanic Heritage Month, but that was unclear. All of these incidents represent different versions of digital blackface/brown face, and show how it contributes to identity tourism, because people are assuming aspects of certain identities to get laughs on the internet, or make fun of someone else on television.'''