There's a saying that "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." But what happens when imitation appears to cross over into cultural appropriation and exploitation? This week, social media found out, after several black women on Twitter publicly accused a number of white female influencers of "blackfishing": some using dark facial makeup, some wearing their hair in cornrows and other traditionally black hairstyles, and others allegedly enhancing their bodies, seemingly to look like black women. The controversy heated up last week when college sophomore Deja (aka "Dee," on Twitter) tweeted images of a DM she said she'd received on Instagram. She said the message revealed that Emma Hallberg, one of the girls she followed on Instagram and whom she believed was a light-skinned black woman, was, in fact, a white woman from Sweden. Deja tells Teen Vogue she was stunned when she received an image from one of her followers of Emma looking significantly lighter and paler than she appears on Instagram. "I wasn't really mad, I was just kind of shocked because this girl genuinely looks like a mixed black person," Deja told Teen Vogue over the phone. "It was just kind of annoying because she's gotten so Instagram famous off what black people have. Not even black people get the same amount of attention she's getting." Deja was apparently not the only one displeased with Emma's allegedly darkened appearance. One Instagram user allegedly reached out to Emma on Instagram to ask if she was indeed white. Emma allegedly responded to the user, claiming she'd never attempted to misrepresent herself and that the picture being circulated of her appearing lighter was a photo from the winter when she hadn't received much sun. She allegedly responded, "of course there's a difference in my skin tone because I get very tanned NATURALLY when I've been in the sun!!" In a screenshot that appears to show her further addressing the controversy, Emma allegedly wrote: "Yes I'm white and I never claimed to be anything else."
Therefore I use foundation that matches my neck and the rest of my body." Emma claimed that she does not understand why black women are upset with her appearance.
Instagram model Jaiden Gumbayan, who told Teen Vogue she is Filipino-Italian but does not identify as "white" but instead "as Jaiden Gumbayan," is yet another influencer who has been heavily mentioned in relation to this issue. Last June, Jaiden was accused of sporting blackface after posting an Instagram image of herself seeming to appear visibly darker than her typical appearance in some previous Instagram images. She's also faced heavy backlash for posting several Instagram photos wearing cornrows, which have since been deleted. "I am so sorry to those who may [have] been offended, and for perpetuating a culture of appropriation," Jaiden told Teen Vogue in an email. "I recognize that I have a responsibility to understand the intentional and unintentional impacts of my actions and platform." Jaiden additionally shared that she's grown to understand black women's criticisms of her appearance. "I understand why some Black women would be upset by what I do with my hair," said Jaiden. "I don’t think I can ever understand the depth and complexity of that pain, but I am constantly working to grow my understanding."
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