Current Events > Do you think we should have seperate terms for 'blackface'?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Currently "blackface" as a word is used to describe 2 things:
1. The racist and bigoted misrepresentation of black people in plays and minstrel shows in the early 20th century that reduced black people to exaggerated offensive false stereotypes.
2. Any time a white person wears makeup to appear to be black.

Any sane person would condemn 1, however many people would say 2 isn't necessarily bad depending on context.

Do you think it would be helpful to have separate terms to describe these separate things?

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/5/5/5/AAWjk4AADNs7.png

Trying to, generically, "appear black" is pretty sus in general. It's a bit different if they're trying to look like a specific person who happens to be black (eg. if one were to dress up as Kanye West, aka the 47th President of the United States, for Halloween), but even then, given the connotations around it it's not really that hard to just forego the blackface.

You Canadian, TC?

MikeHope posted...

however many people would say 2 isn't necessarily bad depending on context.

Who

pegusus123456 posted...

Who

Are you saying it is always necessarily bad?

big yikes

New User
User Since: May 2022
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We really need a karma gate here...

pegusus123456 posted...

Who

Many people.

Do you believe people do not think this?

Do you argue it is always necessarily bad?

We can call the people in group one "pieces of shit" and the people in group two "fucking morons."

I'm curious what context would be ok for option 2 tc

MikeHope posted...

however many people would say 2 isn't necessarily bad depending on context.

Would these "many people" happen to wear hoods in their spare time?

Step up on your main TC

BlueBoy675 posted...

Step up on your main TC

Why would you assume that he still has another account? That's pretty rude of you.

we don't need another term

MikeHope posted...

however many people would say 2 isn't necessarily bad depending on context.

who? like, racist people? yeah, probably.

This topic is still up, I see...

_BlueMonk posted...

I'm curious what context would be ok for option 2 tc

Well, imitation is not often thought of as bad. Shows like SNL are often based on the idea that imitation can be done respectfully or appropriately. Often these imitations are aided by makeup.

Very rarely does the imitating person have the exact same racial background as the person they are imitating. And so, if we acknowledge that imitation isn't necessarily bad, then we would have to articulate in which way and over what dimension cross-racial imitation is necessarily bad.

By the way you phrase your question, from my interpretation of what you are saying, it would seem to suggest you assume almost all imitations across race are necessarily bad, is this what you are arguing?

Kitt posted...

We really need a karma gate here...

But we already have a karma gate.
A low one.

If you take out any sort of context, yes it make sense.

However the fact is that blackface has been historically used as a way to demean black people which is why it's frowned upon and always will be.

Nah

you seem like the kind of person to have a nuanced opinion on blackface

ArchNemo posted...

If you take out any sort of context, yes it make sense.

However the fact is that blackface has been historically used as a way to demean black people which is why it's frowned upon and always will be.

Doesn't that argument require that the 2 separate definitions share the same term?

Definition 2 has not been historically used as a way to demean black people.

Definition 1 has, for sure, and I don't think any sane person would defend it.

But definition 2 would be equivalent to a non-Irish person wearing Liam Neeson looking makeup to imitate Liam Neeson.

Is that kind of cross-racial impression inherently bad?

Another way to ask it is: Is it more productive or counter-productive to conflate these two ideas?