If you have been on Instagram recently, you may have noticed a trend called “blackfishing.”
It is a play on words referring to the term “catfishing” in which you pretend to be someone you are not online in order to gain a romantic interest. Blackfishing is when someone who is white or predominantly part of white culture uses cosmetics such as self-tanner, bronzer, corn-rows or weaves, and photo editing to emanate themselves as a selfidentified African-American.
Most of the time it is females replicating this culture, however in certain circumstances it can be a male as well. Blackfishing is not only offensive to the African-American community, but is cultural appropriation at its finest. It is offensive in many ways that cannot be explained all in one article.
However, some reasons why it is offensive is because it is a version of blackface that is unrecognized by white culture as inappropriate and racist. It is cultural appropriation because when one “edits” themselves to look like an African American, they are portraying the journey of the culture without sharing the struggles and discrimination that they continue to face in today’s society.
Some of the discrimination AfricanAmericans face is on an individual level, where people inferiorize them and think of them as “lesser-beings.” Some of the discrimination is on a systematic scale, such as Blacks being less likely to be hired for the same job as white people, or being paid much less for equal amounts of work.
African-Americans face discrimination in the housing market where they are less likely to be approved for a mortgage than a white person. They are also seen as criminals and are constantly frisked by police officers and deemed “shoplifters” in many stores.
The struggles that African-Americans face goes on, and we need to recognize this oppression and do whatever we can to combat it. Blackfishing is a way for white people to take all the aesthetically pleasing parts about being Black without dealing with the discrimination and racism they face on a daily basis.
Some examples of blackfishing and cultural appropriation include Kim Kardashian-West getting cornrows, and Ariana Grande using massive amounts of self-tanner to achieve a darker skin tone. Unfortunately, the media finds these celebrities embracing culture and trying to spread awareness, when in reality, they are appropriating culture that is not theirs.
If you see someone on Instagram, any social media platform, or real life trying to “blackfish” there are multiple ways you could educate them without them getting defensive. Try explaining to them the discrimination that African-Americans face, and show them that they should feel confident in their own skin, regardless of race.
When we come together to educate, not shame or demean someone for their aesthetic choices, we find ourselves in a more open and more accepting world.
Blackfishing may not go away automatically, but we can stop the imitating with education and kindness one day at a time.
Emily Rubino
Opinions Editor
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