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{{Short description|Theatrical makeup caricaturing Black people}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}}
[[File:Minstrel PosterBillyVanWare edit.jpg|right|thumbnail|280px|This reproduction of a 1900 [[William H. West (entertainer)|William H. West]] [[minstrel show]] poster, originally published by the [[Strobridge Lithographing Company]], shows the transformation from a person of European descent to a caricature of a dark-skinned person of African descent.]]

'''Blackface''' is the practice of performers using burned cork, shoe polish, or [[theatrical makeup]] to portray a [[caricature]] of black people on stage or in entertainment. Scholarship on the origins or definition of blackface vary with some taking a global perspective that includes European culture and [[Western colonialism]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ndiaye |first=Noémie |title=Scripts of Blackness: Early Modern Performance Culture and the Making of Race |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |year=2022 |isbn=9781512826074}}</ref> Blackface became a global phenomenon as an outgrowth of theatrical practices of racial impersonation in theatres across the [[British Empire]], where it was integral to the development of imperial racial politics.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hoxworth |first=Kellen |title=Transoceanic Blackface: Empire, Race, Performance |publisher=Northwestern University Press |year=2024 |isbn=9780810147072 |location=Evanston, IL}}</ref> Scholars with this wider view may date the practice of blackface to as early as [[Medieval Europe]]'s [[mystery play]]s when bitumen and coal were used to darken the skin of white performers portraying demons, devils, and damned souls.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hornback |first=Robert |title=Racism and Early Blackface Comic Traditions: From the Old World to the New |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2018 |isbn=9783319780474}}</ref> Still others date the practice to [[English Renaissance theatre|English Renaissance theater]], in works such as [[William Shakespeare]]'s ''[[Othello]]'' and [[Anne of Denmark]]'s personal performance in ''[[The Masque of Blackness]]''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vaughan |first=Virginia Mason |title=Performing Blackness on English Stages, 1500–1800 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |isbn=9780521845847}}</ref>

However, some scholars see blackface as a specific practice limited to American culture that began in the [[minstrel show]]; a performance art that originated in the United States in the early 19th century and which contained its own performance practices unique to the American stage. Scholars taking this point of view see blackface as arising not from a European stage tradition but from the context of class warfare<ref name=":3" /> from within the United States, with the American white working poor inventing blackface as a means of expressing their anger over being disenfranchised economically, politically, and socially from middle and upper class White America.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Professor |first=Department of English University of Virginia Eric Lott Associate |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Lg5mDUSgYsC |title=Love and Theft : Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class |date=1993-10-28 |publisher=Oxford University Press, USA |isbn=978-0-19-976224-8 |language=en}}</ref> 

In the [[United States]], the practice of blackface became a [[Popular culture|popular entertainment]] during the 19th century into the 20th. It contributed to the spread of [[Stereotypes of African Americans|racial stereotypes]] such as "[[Jim Crow (character)|Jim Crow]]", the "happy-go-lucky [[List of ethnic slurs#D|darky]] on the plantation", and "Zip Coon" also known as the "[[dandy|dandified]] [[List of ethnic slurs#Coon|coon]]".<ref>For the "darky"/"coon" distinction see, for example, note 34 on p. 167 of Edward Marx and Laura E. Franey's annotated edition of Yone Noguchi, ''The American Diary of a Japanese Girl'', Temple University Press, 2007, {{ISBN|1592135552}}. See also Lewis A. Erenberg (1984), ''Steppin' Out: New York Nightlife and the Transformation of American Culture, 1890–1930'', University of Chicago Press, p. 73, {{ISBN|0226215156}}. For more on the "darky" stereotype, see J. Ronald Green (2000), ''Straight Lick: The Cinema of Oscar Micheaux'', Indiana University Press, pp. 134, 206, {{ISBN|0253337534}}; p. 151 of the same work also alludes to the specific "coon" archetype.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Nowatzki |first1=Robert |title=Paddy Jumps Jim Crow: Irish-Americans and Blackface Minstrelsy |journal=Éire-Ireland |date=2006 |volume=41 |issue=3 |pages=162–184 |doi=10.1353/eir.2007.0010 |s2cid=161886074 |id={{Project MUSE|207996}} }}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite journal |last1=Rehin |first1=George F. |title=Harlequin Jim Crow: Continuity and Convergence in Blackface Clowning |journal=The Journal of Popular Culture |date=December 1975 |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=682–701 |id={{ProQuest|1297376766}} |doi=10.1111/j.0022-3840.1975.0903_682.x }}</ref> By the middle of the 19th century, blackface [[minstrel show]]s had become a distinctive American artform, translating formal works such as opera into popular terms for a general audience.<ref>{{cite book|first=William John|last=Mahar|title=Behind the Burnt Cork Mask: Early Blackface Minstrelsy and Antebellum American Popular Culture|url=https://archive.org/details/behindburntcorkm00will|url-access=registration|publisher=University of Illinois Press|year=1999|page=[https://archive.org/details/behindburntcorkm00will/page/9 9]|isbn=978-0-252-06696-2}}</ref> Although minstrelsy began with white performers, by the 1840s there were also many all-black cast minstrel shows touring the United States in blackface, as well as black entertainers performing in shows with predominately white casts in blackface. Some of the most successful and prominent minstrel show performers, composers and playwrights were themselves black, such as: [[Bert Williams]], [[Bob Cole (composer)|Bob Cole]], and [[J. Rosamond Johnson]]. Early in the 20th century, blackface branched off from the minstrel show and became a form of entertainment in its own right,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sweet |first1=Frank W. |title=A History of the Minstrel Show |date=2000 |publisher=Boxes & Arrows, Incorporated |isbn=978-0-939479-21-4 |page=25 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D5cVSVbOu2EC&pg=PA25 }}</ref> including [[Tom show|Tom Shows]], parodying abolitionist [[Harriet Beecher Stowe|Harriet Beecher Stowe's]] 1852 novel ''[[Uncle Tom's Cabin]]''. In the United States, blackface declined in popularity from the 1940s, with performances dotting the cultural landscape into the [[civil rights movement]] of the 1950s and 1960s.<ref name="Clark">Clark, Alexis. "[https://www.history.com/news/blackface-history-racism-origins How the History of Blackface Is Rooted in Racism]". ''History''. A&E Television Networks, LLC. 2019.</ref> It was generally considered highly offensive, disrespectful, and racist by the late 20th century,<ref name="Vox">{{cite news |last1=Desmond-Harris |first1=Jenée |title=Don't get what's wrong with blackface? Here's why it's so offensive. |url=https://www.vox.com/2014/10/29/7089591/why-is-blackface-offensive-halloween-costume |work=Vox |date=29 October 2014 }}</ref> but the practice (or similar-looking ones) was exported to other countries.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Garen |first1=Micah |last2=Carleton |first2=Marie-Helene |last3=Swaab |first3=Justine |title=Black Pete tradition 'Dutch racism in full display' |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2019/11/27/zwarte-piet-black-pete-is-dutch-racism-in-full-display/ |work=Al Jazeera |date=27 November 2019 |quote=Protesters have rallied against the Dutch blackface tradition }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Thelwell |first=Chinua |id={{Project MUSE|77081|type=book}} |title=Exporting Jim Crow: Blackface Minstrelsy in South Africa and Beyond |date=2020 |publisher=University of Massachusetts Press |isbn=978-1-61376-766-5 |location=Amherst }}{{page needed|date=October 2023}}</ref>

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== Early history ==
[[File:1923 “FLIT” ad - Seuss-cartoon-racist (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[FLIT]] advertisement by [[Dr. Seuss]] depicting blackface-styled caricatures of Black people]]

There is no consensus about a single moment that constitutes the origin of blackface. [[Arizona State University]] professor [[Ayanna Thompson]] links the beginning of blackface to stage practices within the [[Medieval Europe]] [[Mystery play|miracle or mystery plays]]. It was common practice in medieval Europe to use bitumen and soot from coal to darken skin to depict corrupted souls, demons, and devils in blackface. [[Louisiana State University]] professor Anthony Barthelemy stated, "“In many medieval miracle plays, the souls of the damned were represented by actors painted black or in black costumes.... In [many versions], Lucifer and his confederate rebels, after having sinned, turn black.”<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/blackface-older-you-think-180977618/|title=Blackface Is Older Than You Might Think: From medieval European theater troupes to American minstrelsy, the harmful tradition has a surprisingly long history|author=[[Ayanna Thompson]]|journal=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]|date=April 29, 2021}}</ref> 

The journalist and cultural commentator [[John Strausbaugh]] places it as part of a tradition of "displaying Blackness for the enjoyment and edification of white viewers" that dates back at least to 1441, when captive West Africans were displayed in Portugal.<ref name="autogenerated2">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=35–36}}</ref> White actors routinely portrayed Black characters in [[English Renaissance theatre]], most notably in ''[[Othello]]'' (1604).<ref name="Black_and_white_minstrel" /> However, ''Othello'' and other plays of this era did not involve the emulation and caricature of "such supposed innate qualities of Blackness as inherent musicality, natural athleticism", etc. that Strausbaugh sees as crucial to blackface.<ref name="autogenerated2" />

A 2023 article appearing on the [[National Museum of African American History and Culture]] website, asserts that the birth of blackface is attributable to class tensions in the United States: <blockquote>Historian Dale Cockrell once noted that poor and working-class whites who felt “squeezed politically, economically, and socially from the top, but also from the bottom, invented minstrelsy” as a way of expressing the oppression that marked being members of the majority, but outside of the white norm.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Blackface: The Birth of An American Stereotype |url=https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/blackface-birth-american-stereotype |access-date=2023-09-30 |website=National Museum of African American History and Culture |language=en}}</ref></blockquote>By objectifying formerly enslaved people through demeaning, humor-inducing stock caricatures, "comedic performances of 'blackness' by whites in exaggerated costumes and make-up, [could not] be separated fully from the racial derision and stereotyping at its core".<ref name=":2" /> This process of "thingification" has been written about by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe, "The whole idea of a stereotype is to simplify",<ref name=":2" /> and by [[Aimé Césaire]], "Césaire revealed over and over again the colonizers’ sense of superiority and their sense of mission as the world’s civilizers, a mission that depended on turning the Other into barbarians".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kelley |first1=Robin D. G. |title=Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination |date=2003 |publisher=Beacon Press |isbn=978-0-8070-0977-2 |page=174 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QqxOqALcSZoC&pg=PA174 }}</ref>

== History within the United States ==
[[File:Dreadnought hoax larger photo (cropped).png|thumb|upright=1.3|The [[Dreadnought hoax|''Dreadnought'' hoaxers]] in [[Ethiopian Empire|Abyssinian]] costume]]
Blackface was a performance tradition in the [[American Theatre Wing|American theater]] for roughly 100 years beginning around 1830. It was practiced in Britain as well, surviving longer than in the U.S.; ''[[The Black and White Minstrel Show]]'' on television lasted until 1978.<ref name="Black_and_white_minstrel">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=62}}</ref>

In both the United States and Britain, blackface was most commonly used in the minstrel performance tradition, which it both predated and outlasted. Early white performers in blackface used burnt cork and later [[Foundation (cosmetics)|greasepaint]] or shoe polish to blacken their skin and exaggerate their lips, often wearing woolly wigs, gloves, tailcoats, or ragged clothes to complete the transformation. According to a 1901 source: "Be careful to get the black even around the eyes and mouth. Leave the lips just as they are, they will appear red to the audience. Comedians leave a wide white space all around the lips. It makes the mouth appear larger and will look red as the lips do. If you wish to represent an old darkey, use white drop chalk, outlining the eyebrows, chin, whisk- ers or a gray beard."<ref>{{cite web|title=An excerpt from *The Complete Minstrel Guide*, published in 1901.|url=https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/blackface-minstrelsy-in-modern-america/sources/1426|access-date=2022-02-06|website=Digital Public Library of America|language=en}}</ref> Later, black artists also performed in blackface. The famous [[Dreadnought hoax|''Dreadnought'' hoax]] involved the use of blackface and costume for a group of high-profile authors to gain access to a military vessel.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 5, 2012 |title=How a bearded Virginia Woolf and her band of 'jolly savages' hoaxed the navy |url=http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/feb/05/bloomsbury-dreadnought-hoax-recalled-letter |website=The Guardian}}</ref>

Stereotypes embodied in the stock characters of blackface minstrels not only played a significant role in cementing and proliferating racist images, attitudes, and perceptions worldwide, but also in popularizing black culture.<ref>Lott, Eric. "Blackface and Blackness: The Minstrel Show in American Culture", in Annemarie Bean, James V. Hatch, and [[Brooks McNamara]] (eds), ''Inside the minstrel mask: readings in nineteenth-century blackface minstrelsy'', pp. 5–6.</ref> In some quarters, the caricatures that were the legacy of blackface persist to the present day and are a cause of ongoing controversy. Another view is that "blackface is a form of [[cross-dressing]] in which one puts on the insignias of a sex, class, or race that stands in opposition to one's own".<ref>Rogin, Michael (University of California Press 1998) ''Blackface, White Noise: Jewish Immigrants in the Hollywood Melting Pot'' (p. 30)</ref>

By the mid-20th century, changing attitudes about race and racism effectively ended the prominence of blackface makeup used in performance in the U.S. and elsewhere. [[Blackface in contemporary art]] remains in relatively limited use as a theatrical device; today, it is more commonly used as social commentary or satire. Perhaps the most enduring effect of blackface is the precedent it established in the introduction of [[African-American culture]] to an international audience, albeit through a distorted lens.<ref name="Lott-17-18">{{Harvnb|Lott|1993|pp=17–18}}.</ref><ref name="Watkins 82">{{Harvnb|Watkins|1999|p=82}}.</ref> Blackface's [[Cultural appropriation|appropriation]],<ref name="Lott-17-18" /><ref name="Watkins 82" /><ref>''Inside the minstrel mask: Readings in nineteenth-century blackface minstrelsy'' by Bean, Annemarie, James V. Hatch, and Brooks McNamara. 1996. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press.</ref> [[Exploitation of labour|exploitation]], and [[Cultural assimilation|assimilation]]<ref name="Lott-17-18" /> of African-American culture&nbsp;– as well as the inter-ethnic artistic collaborations that stemmed from it&nbsp;– were but a prologue to the lucrative packaging, marketing, and dissemination of African-American cultural expression and its myriad derivative forms in today's world popular culture.<ref name="Watkins 82" /><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rodriquez |first1=Jason |title=Color-Blind Ideology and the Cultural Appropriation of Hip-Hop |journal=Journal of Contemporary Ethnography |date=December 2006 |volume=35 |issue=6 |pages=645–668 |doi=10.1177/0891241606286997 |s2cid=146539852 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lott |first1=Eric |title=Review of Darktown Strutters |journal=African American Review |date=1997 |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=169–172 |doi=10.2307/3042205 |jstor=3042205 |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2838/is_n1_v31/ai_19569682 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051204174551/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2838/is_n1_v31/ai_19569682 |archive-date=4 December 2005 }}</ref>

=== 19th century ===
[[File:John McCullough as Othello.jpg|thumb|The white American actor [[John McCullough (actor)|John McCullough]] as Othello, 1878]]
[[Lewis Hallam Jr.|Lewis Hallam, Jr.]], a white blackface actor of [[Old American Company|American Company]] fame, brought blackface in this more specific sense to prominence as a theatrical device in the United States when playing the role of "Mungo", an inebriated black man in ''[[The Padlock]]'', a British play that premiered in New York City at the [[John Street Theatre]] on May 29, 1769.<ref>{{cite book|last= Tosches |first= Nick |title= Where Dead Voices Gather |publisher= Back Bay |year= 2002 |isbn= 978-0-316-89537-8 |page = 10}}</ref> The play attracted notice, and other performers adopted the style. From at least the 1810s, blackface [[clown]]s were popular in the United States.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=68}}.</ref> British actor [[Charles Mathews]] toured the U.S. in 1822–23, and as a result added a "black" characterization to his repertoire of British regional types for his next show, ''A Trip to America'', which included Mathews singing "Possum up a Gum Tree", a popular slave freedom song.<ref name=gotham>[[Edwin G. Burrows|Burrows, Edwin G.]] & [[Mike Wallace (historian)|Wallace, Mike]]. ''[[Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898]]''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. p. 489.</ref> [[Edwin Forrest]] played a plantation black in 1823,<ref name=gotham /> and [[George Washington Dixon]] was already building his stage career around blackface in 1828,<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=74 ''et. seq.''}}</ref> but it was another white comic actor, [[Thomas D. Rice]], who truly popularized blackface. Rice introduced the song "[[Jump Jim Crow]]", accompanied by a dance, in his stage act in 1828,<ref>{{Harvnb|Lott|1993|p=211}}.</ref> and scored stardom with it by 1832.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=67}}.</ref>

{{blockquote|First on de heel tap, den on the toe<br />Every time I wheel about I jump Jim Crow.<br />I wheel about and turn about an do just so,<br />And every time I wheel about I jump Jim Crow.<ref>Oakley, Giles (2nd Edition) The Devil's Music: A History of the Blues ({{ISBN|0306807432}})</ref>}}

Rice traveled the U.S., performing under the stage name "Daddy Jim Crow". The name ''Jim Crow'' later became attached to [[Jim Crow laws|statutes]] that codified the reinstitution of [[Racial segregation in the United States|segregation]] and [[racial discrimination|discrimination]] after [[Reconstruction era|Reconstruction]].<ref>Ronald L. F. Davis, [http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/history/creating2.htm Creating Jim Crow] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070601223741/http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/history/creating2.htm |date=June 1, 2007 }}, ''The History of Jim Crow'' online, New York Life. Accessed January 31, 2008.</ref>

In the 1830s and early 1840s, blackface performances mixed skits with comic songs and vigorous dances. Initially, Rice and his peers performed only in relatively disreputable venues, but as blackface gained popularity they gained opportunities to perform as ''[[entr'acte]]s'' in theatrical venues of a higher class. Stereotyped blackface characters developed: buffoonish, lazy, superstitious, cowardly, and lascivious characters, who stole, lied pathologically, and mangled the English language. Early blackface minstrels were all male, so cross-dressing white men also played black women who were often portrayed as unappealingly and grotesquely mannish, in the matronly [[Mammy stereotype|mammy]] mold, or as highly sexually provocative. The 1830s American stage, where blackface first rose to prominence, featured similarly comic stereotypes of the clever Yankee and the larger-than-life Frontiersman;<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=27}}.</ref> the late 19th- and early 20th-century American and British stage where it last prospered<ref name="autogenerated1">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=130–31}}.</ref> featured many other, mostly [[Ethnic group|ethnically]]-based, comic stereotypes: conniving Jews;<ref>Jody Rosen (2006), album notes to ''Jewface'', Reboot Stereophonic CD RSR006</ref><ref name="Strausbaugh-131">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=131}}.</ref> drunken brawling [[Ireland|Irishmen]] with [[wikt:blarney|blarney]];<ref name="Strausbaugh-131" /><ref>Michael C. O'Neill, [http://www.eoneill.com/library/laconics/1/1o.htm O'Neill's Ireland: Old Sod or Blarney Bog?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120418092410/http://www.eoneill.com/library/laconics/1/1o.htm |date=April 18, 2012 }}, ''Laconics'' (eOneill.com), 2006. Accessed online February 2, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19960102/ai_n9632177 Pat, Paddy and Teague] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016142610/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19960102/ai_n9632177 |date=October 16, 2015 }}, ''The Independent'' (London), January 2, 1996. Accessed online (at findarticles.com) February 2, 2008.</ref> oily Italians;<ref name="Strausbaugh-131" /> stodgy Germans;<ref name="Strausbaugh-131" /> and gullible rural people.<ref name="Strausbaugh-131" />

1830s and early 1840s blackface performers performed solo or as duos, with the occasional trio; the traveling troupes that would later characterize blackface minstrelsy arose only with the minstrel show.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=30}}.</ref> In New York City in 1843, [[Dan Emmett]] and his [[Virginia Minstrels]] broke blackface minstrelsy loose from its novelty act and ''entr'acte'' status and performed the first full-blown minstrel show: an evening's entertainment composed entirely of blackface performance. ([[Edwin Pearce Christy|E. P. Christy]] did more or less the same, apparently independently, earlier the same year in [[Buffalo, New York]].)<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=102–03}}</ref> Their loosely structured show with the musicians sitting in a semicircle, a [[tambourine]] player on one end and a [[bones (instrument)|bones]] player on the other, set the precedent for what would soon become the first act of a standard three-act minstrel show.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=51–52}}</ref> By 1852, the skits that had been part of blackface performance for decades expanded to one-act farces, often used as the show's third act.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=56–57}}</ref>

[[File:Carrie Swain as Topsy in Uncle Tom’s Cabin.jpg|thumb|Carrie Swain in blackface as Topsy in ''Uncle Tom's Cabin''.]]
In the 1870s the actress [[Carrie Swain]] began performing in minstrel shows alongside her husband, the acrobat and blackface performer Sam Swain. It is possible that she was the first woman performer to appear in blackface.<ref>{{cite book|title=From "Barney's Courtship" to Burns and Allen: Male-female Comedy Teams in American Vaudeville, 1865-1932|first=Shirley Louise|last= Staples|year=1981|publisher=[[Tufts University Press]]|page=119}}</ref> Theatre scholar Shirley Staples stated, "Carrie Swain may have been the first woman to attempt the acrobatic comedy typical of male blackface work."<ref>{{cite book|title=Male-female Comedy Teams in American Vaudeville, 1865-1932|first=Shirley|last= Staples|year= 1984|publisher=[[UMI Research Press]]|isbn=9780835715201|page=58}}</ref> She later portrayed the blackface role of Topsy in a musical adaptation of [[Harriet Beecher Stowe]] [[anti-slavery]] novel ''[[Uncle Tom's Cabin]]'' by composer [[Caryl Florio]] and dramatist H. Wayne Ellis. It premiered at the [[Chestnut Street Opera House]] in Philadelphia on May 22, 1882.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OVdShkzkX74C&q=American+Musical+Theatre:+A+Chronicle|title=American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle|first1=Gerald Martin|last1=Bordman|first2=Richard|last2= Norton|year=2010|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=9780199729708|page=72}}</ref>

The songs of [[Northern United States|Northern]] composer [[Stephen Foster]] figured prominently in blackface minstrel shows of the period. Though written in dialect and [[Political correctness|politically incorrect]] by modern standards, his later songs were free of the ridicule and blatantly racist caricatures that typified other songs of the genre. Foster's works treated [[Slavery in the United States|slaves]] and the [[Southern United States|South]] in general with sentimentality that appealed to audiences of the day.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Key |first1=Susan |title=Sound and Sentimentality: Nostalgia in the Songs of Stephen Foster |journal=American Music |date=1995 |volume=13 |issue=2 |pages=145–166 |id={{Gale|A18253704}} {{ProQuest|1295933905}} |doi=10.2307/3052252 |jstor=3052252 }}</ref>
[[File:Man in blackface as minstrel LCCN2001703945 (cropped).tif|thumb|left|A man in blackface as minstrel, {{Circa|1890}}]]
White minstrel shows featured white performers pretending to be black people, playing their versions of 'black music' and speaking [[:wikt:ersatz|ersatz]] [[African-American English|black dialects]]. Minstrel shows dominated popular show business in the U.S. from that time through into the 1890s, also enjoying massive popularity in the UK and in other parts of Europe.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=126}}.</ref> As the minstrel show went into decline, blackface returned to its novelty act roots and became part of [[vaudeville]].<ref name="autogenerated1" /> Blackface featured prominently in film at least into the 1930s, and the "aural blackface"<ref name="Strausbaugh-225">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=225}}.</ref> of the ''[[Amos 'n' Andy]]'' radio show lasted into the 1950s.<ref name="Strausbaugh-225" /> Meanwhile, amateur blackface minstrel shows continued to be common at least into the 1950s.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=145–49}}.</ref> In the UK, one such blackface popular in the 1950s was Ricardo Warley from [[Alston, Cumbria]] who toured around the North of England with a monkey called Bilbo.<ref>Ransom, Harry. ''Minstrel Show Collection'', p. 149 (1959), UTA.</ref>

As a result, the genre played an important role in shaping perceptions of and prejudices about black people generally and African Americans in particular. Some social commentators have stated that blackface provided an outlet for white peoples' fear of the unknown and the unfamiliar, and a socially acceptable way of expressing their feelings and fears about race and control. Writes [[Eric Lott]] in ''Love and Theft: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class'': "The black mask offered a way to play with the collective fears of a degraded and threatening&nbsp;– and male&nbsp;– Other while at the same time maintaining some symbolic control over them."<ref>{{Harvnb|Lott|1993|p=25}}.</ref>

Blackface, at least initially, could also give voice to an oppositional dynamic that was prohibited by society. As early as 1832, [[Thomas D. Rice]] was singing: "An' I caution all white dandies not to come in my way, / For if dey insult me, dey'll in de gutter lay." It also on occasion equated lower-class white and lower-class black audiences; while parodying Shakespeare, Rice sang, "Aldough I'm a black man, de white is call'd my broder."<ref>{{cite book|last=Ashny|first=LeRoy|title=With Amusement for All|publisher=University Press of Kentucky|date=2006|pages=17–18}}</ref>

=== 20th century ===
[[File:BlackfaceMinstrelsPostcard.jpg|thumb|left|This postcard, published c.&nbsp;1908, shows a white minstrel team. While both are wearing wigs, the man on the left is in blackface and [[drag (clothing)|drag]].]]
[[File:Al Jolson in Mammy.jpg|thumbnail|Singer and actor [[Al Jolson]] wearing blackface in the musical film ''[[Mammy (1930 film)|Mammy]]'' (1930)]]

In the [[Inequality in Hollywood|early years of film]], black characters were routinely played by white people in blackface. In [[Film adaptations of Uncle Tom's Cabin|the first filmic adaptation]] of ''[[Uncle Tom's Cabin]]'' (1903), all of the major black roles were white people in blackface.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=203–04}}.</ref> Even the 1914 ''Uncle Tom'' starring African-American actor [[Sam Lucas]] in the title role had a white male in blackface as Topsy.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=204–06}}.</ref> [[D. W. Griffith]]'s ''[[The Birth of a Nation]]'' (1915) used white people in blackface to represent all of its major black characters,<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=211–12}}.</ref> but reaction against the film's racism largely put an end to this practice in dramatic film roles. Thereafter, white people in blackface would appear almost exclusively in broad comedies or "ventriloquizing" blackness<ref>Michael Rogin, ''Blackface, White Noise: Jewish Immigrants in the Hollywood Melting Pot'' (1998), University of California Press, p. 79, {{ISBN|0520213807}}.</ref> in the context of a vaudeville or minstrel performance within a film.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=214}}.</ref> This stands in contrast to made-up white people routinely playing Native Americans, Asians, Arabs, and so forth, for several more decades.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=214–15}}.</ref>

From the 1910s up until the early 1950s, many well-known entertainers of stage and screen also [[List of entertainers who performed in blackface|performed in blackface]].<ref>One extensive list can be found at {{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=222–25}}.</ref> Light-skinned people who performed in blackface in film included [[Al Jolson]],<ref name="RJ-Smith">Smith, R. J., "{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20041124222423/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1346/is_8_46/ai_76929846 Pardon the Expression]}}" (book review), ''Los Angeles Magazine'', August 2001. Accessed February 2, 2008.</ref> [[Eddie Cantor]],<ref name=Kenrick>{{cite web|last1=John|first1=Kenrick|url=http://www.musicals101.com/blackface.htm|website=Musicals 101|title=Blackface and Old Wounds|access-date=May 25, 2016}}</ref> [[Bing Crosby]],<ref name="RJ-Smith" /> [[Fred Astaire]], [[Buster Keaton]], [[Joan Crawford]], [[Irene Dunne]], [[Doris Day]], [[Milton Berle]], [[William Holden]], [[Marion Davies]], [[Myrna Loy]], [[Betty Grable]], [[Dennis Morgan]], [[Laurel and Hardy]], [[Betty Hutton]], [[The Three Stooges]], [[Marx Brothers|The Marx Brothers]], [[Mickey Rooney]], [[Shirley Temple]], [[Judy Garland]], [[Donald O'Connor]] and [[Chester Morris]] and [[George E. Stone]] in several of the ''Boston Blackie'' films.<ref name=Kenrick /> In 1936, when [[Orson Welles]] was touring his ''[[Voodoo Macbeth]]''; the lead actor, Maurice Ellis, fell ill, so Welles stepped into the role, performing in blackface.<ref>{{cite book |last=Callow |first=Simon |title=Orson Welles: The Road to Xanadu |publisher=Penguin |year=1995 |page=[https://archive.org/details/orsonwellesvolum00simo/page/145 145] |isbn=978-0-670-86722-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/orsonwellesvolum00simo/page/145 }}</ref>

As late as the 1940s, [[Warner Bros.]] used blackface in ''[[Yankee Doodle Dandy]]'' (1942), a [[minstrel show]] sketch in ''[[This Is the Army]]'' (1943) and by casting [[Flora Robson]] as a [[Haitians|Haitian]] maid in ''[[Saratoga Trunk]]'' (1945).<ref name="Bogle">{{citation|last=Bogle|first=Donald|title=Heat Wave: The Life and Career of Ethel Waters|author-link=Donald Bogle|year=2011|isbn=978-0-06-124173-4|publisher=Harper-Collins|page=[https://archive.org/details/heatwavelifecare2011bogl/page/369 369]|url=https://archive.org/details/heatwavelifecare2011bogl/page/369}}</ref> In ''[[The Spoilers (1942 film)|The Spoilers]]'' (1942), [[John Wayne]] appeared in blackface and bantered in a mock accent with a black maid who mistook him for an authentic black man.

In ''[[Holiday Inn (film)|Holiday Inn]],'' [[Bing Crosby]] and [[Marjorie Reynolds]] sang “Abraham,” a song honoring Lincoln’s birthday, in shoe-polish blackface. The band behind them and the waiters were also in blackface.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/02/08/my-year-olds-saw-blackface-christmas-movie-asked-why-are-they-doing-that |title=My 5-year-olds saw blackface in a 1942 Christmas movie and asked, 'Why are they doing that?' |first=Emily |last=Wax-Thibodeaux |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] }}</ref>

Blackface makeup was largely eliminated even from live-action film comedy in the U.S. after the end of the 1930s, when public sensibilities regarding [[Race (classification of human beings)|race]] were beginning to change and blackface became increasingly associated with racism and [[Prejudice|bigotry]].<ref name="Clark"/> 
Still, the tradition did not end all at once. The radio program ''[[Amos 'n' Andy]]'' (1928–1960) constituted a type of "oral blackface", in that the black characters were portrayed by white people and conformed to stage blackface stereotypes.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=225}}; the televised version (1951–53) used African-American actors.</ref> The conventions of blackface also lived on unmodified at least into the 1950s in animated theatrical cartoons. Strausbaugh estimates that roughly one-third of late 1940s [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM]] cartoons "included a blackface, coon, or mammy figure".<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=240}}.</ref> [[Bugs Bunny]] appeared in blackface at least as late as ''[[Southern Fried Rabbit]]'' in 1953.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=241}}.</ref>

Singer [[Grace Slick]] was wearing blackface when her band [[Jefferson Airplane]] performed "Crown of Creation" and "[[Lather (song)|Lather]]" at ''[[The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour]]'' in 1968. A clip is included in a 2004 documentary ''Fly Jefferson Airplane'', directed by [[Bob Sarles]].

The 1976 action comedy ''[[Silver Streak (film)|Silver Streak]]'' included a farcical scene in which [[Gene Wilder]] must impersonate a black man, as instructed by [[Richard Pryor]]. In 1980, an [[underground film]], ''[[Forbidden Zone]]'', was released, directed by [[Richard Elfman]] and starring the band [[Oingo Boingo]], which received controversy for blackface sequences.<ref>{{cite video |people=Elfman, Richard and Bright, Matthew |date=2004 |title=Forbidden Zone |medium=DVD [[Audio commentary]] |publisher=Fantoma |id=UPC 695026704423}}</ref>

Also in 1980, the white members of [[UB40]] appeared in blackface in their "Dream a Lie" video, while the black members appeared in [[Whiteface (performance)|whiteface]] to give the opposite appearance.<ref name=UB40>{{cite video
| title=UB40&nbsp;– Dream A Lie
| access-date=November 18, 2015
| medium=Video
| publisher=YouTube
| url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfoVVRDU378
| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/LfoVVRDU378| archive-date=2021-10-30}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

''[[Trading Places]]'' (1983) is a film telling the elaborate story of a commodities banker and street hustler crossing paths after being made part of a bet. The film features a scene between [[Eddie Murphy]], [[Jamie Lee Curtis]], [[Denholm Elliott]], and [[Dan Aykroyd]] when they must don disguises to enter a train. Aykroyd's character puts on full blackface make-up, a [[Dreadlocks|dreadlocked]] wig and a Jamaican accent to fill the position of a Jamaican [[Cannabis (drug)|pothead]]. The film, being an obvious satire, has received little criticism for its use of racial and [[ethnic stereotype]] due to it mocking the ignorance of Aykroyd's character rather than black people as a whole, with [[Rotten Tomatoes]] citing it as "featuring deft interplay between Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd, ''Trading Places'' is an immensely appealing social satire".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/trading_places/|title=Trading Places|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref>

''[[Soul Man (film)|Soul Man]]'' is a 1986 film featuring [[C. Thomas Howell]] as Mark Watson, a pampered rich white college graduate who uses "tanning pills" to qualify for a scholarship to [[Harvard Law]] only available to African American students. He expects to be treated as a fellow student and instead learns the isolation of 'being black' on campus. He later befriends and falls in love with the original candidate of the scholarship, a single mother who works as a waitress to support her education. He later "comes out" as white, leading to the famous defending line: "Can you blame him for the color of his skin?" Unlike ''Trading Places'', the film was met with heavy criticism of a white man donning blackface to humanize white ignorance at the expense of African American viewers. Despite a large box office intake, it has scored low on every film critic platform. "A white man donning blackface is taboo," said Howell; "Conversation over&nbsp;– you can't win. But our intentions were pure: We wanted to make a funny movie that had a message about racism."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/throwback-thursday-soul-man-star-rae-dawn-chong-rachel-dolezal-i-say-welcome-her-804252|title=Throwback Thursday: 'Soul Man' Star Rae Dawn Chong on Rachel Dolezal: 'I Say Welcome Her In'|website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=June 25, 2015|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref>

==== Parades ====
In the early 20th century, a group of African American laborers began a [[Marching band|marching club]] in the [[Mardi Gras in New Orleans|New Orleans Mardi Gras]] parade, dressed as [[hobo]]s and calling themselves "The Tramps". Wanting a flashier look, they renamed themselves "Zulus" and copied their costumes from a blackface vaudeville skit performed at a local black jazz club and cabaret.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mardigrasdigest.com/News/Feature_Zulu_Blackface.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060227143627/http://www.mardigrasdigest.com/News/Feature_Zulu_Blackface.htm|archive-date=February 27, 2006|url-status=usurped|title=Zulu Blackface: The Real Story!}}</ref> The result is one of the best known and most striking [[krewe]]s of Mardi Gras, the [[Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club|Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club]]. Dressed in [[grass skirt]]s, [[top hat]] and exaggerated makeup, the Zulus of New Orleans are controversial as well as popular.<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/neworleans-zulu-parade-mardi-gras/ "The Zulu Parade of Mardi Gras"], ''American Experience'', [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]]. Accessed July 16, 2008.</ref> The group has, since the 1960s, argued that the black and white makeup they continue to wear is not blackface.

The wearing of blackface was once a regular part of the annual [[Mummers Parade]] in [[Philadelphia]]. Growing dissent from civil rights groups and the offense of the black community led to a 1964 city policy, ruling out blackface.<ref name="Mummer's the word">John Francis Marion, <!--Original URL blocked as potentially harmful by Virgin Media UK. Uncomment if it's safe: {{usurped|1=[http://riverfrontmummers.com/mummers/articles/article1.html--> "On New Year's Day in Philadelphia, Mummer's the word", ''Smithsonian Magazine'', January 1981. Reproduced by Riverfront Mummers. {{Cite web {{!}}url=http://riverfrontmummers.com/mummers/articles/article1.html {{!}}title=Archived copy {{!}}access-date=January 3, 2008 {{!}}archive-date=June 14, 2007 {{!}}archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070614205533/http://riverfrontmummers.com/mummers/articles/article1.html {{!}}url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref> Despite the ban on blackface, brownface was still used in the parade in 2016 to depict Mexicans, causing outrage once again among civil rights groups.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.metro.us/philadelphia/mummers-face-backlash-for-brownface-anti-gay-incidents/zsJpad---ZTkao7g5a2U8U/ |title=Mummers face backlash for 'brownface,' anti-gay incidents|last=Newhouse|first=Sam{{!}}date=January 4, 2016|newspaper=Metro|language=en|access-date=January 27, 2017}}</ref> Also in 1964, bowing to pressure from the interracial group Concern, teenagers in [[Norfolk, Connecticut]], reluctantly agreed to discontinue using blackface in their traditional minstrel show that was a fundraiser for the [[March of Dimes]].<ref name="Norfolk Youth Bow to Ban on Blackface">Joseph A. O'Brien (January 30, 1964). [https://www.proquest.com/docview/548271631 "Norfolk Youth Bows To Ban on 'Blackface{{'"}}]. ''The Hartford Courant''. Accessed February 3, 2011. {{subscription required}}</ref>

=== 21st century ===
{{See also|Blackface in contemporary art}}
[[File:Bamboozled (2000 film) poster.jpg|upright|thumb|Poster for [[Spike Lee]]'s movie ''[[Bamboozled]]'' (2000)]]
Commodities bearing iconic "darky" images, from tableware, soap and toy marbles to home accessories and T-shirts, continue to be manufactured and marketed. Some are reproductions of historical [[Cultural artifact|artifacts]] ("[[wikt:negrobilia|negrobilia]]"), while others are designed for today's marketplace ("fantasy"). There is a thriving [[niche market]] for such items in the U.S., particularly. The value of the original examples of darky iconography (vintage negrobilia [[collectable]]s) has risen steadily since the 1970s.<ref>Leah Dilworth (2003), ''Acts of Possession: : Collecting in America'', Rutgers University Press, p. 255, {{ISBN|0813532728}}.</ref>

There have been several inflammatory incidents of white college students donning blackface. Such incidents usually escalate around [[Halloween]], with students accused of perpetuating racial stereotypes.<ref>Johnson, Sophie.[http://whitmanpioneer.wordpress.com/2006/10/26/%E2%80%98blackface%E2%80%99-incident-ignites-campus/ "'Blackface' incident ignites campus]". ''Whitman College Pioneer'', October 26, 2006. Retrieved November 27, 2007.</ref><ref>Walter, Vic.[http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/11/gates_unfinishe.html "Gates' Unfinished Business: Racism at Texas A&M] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160222210901/http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/11/gates_unfinishe.html |date=February 22, 2016 }}". ABC News, The Blotter, November 10, 2006. Retrieved November 27, 2007.</ref><ref>Editorial. [http://media.www.dailyillini.com/media/storage/paper736/news/2007/10/31/Editorials/Blackface.A.Black.Mark.For.Every.Student-3067335.shtml "Blackface a Black Mark for Every Student] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207202225/http://media.www.dailyillini.com/media/storage/paper736/news/2007/10/31/Editorials/Blackface.A.Black.Mark.For.Every.Student-3067335.shtml |date=December 7, 2008 }} ''The Daily Illini'', October 31, 2007. Retrieved on 12–2–07.</ref><ref>Connolly, Joe. [http://www.dailyorange.com/2.8657/blackface-makes-its-way-to-college-campuses-1.1247695 "Blackface Makes Its Way To College Campuses] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120315201201/http://www.dailyorange.com/2.8657/blackface-makes-its-way-to-college-campuses-1.1247695 |date=March 15, 2012 }}". ''The Daily Orange'', November 11, 2003. Retrieved on November 26, 2007.</ref>

In 1998, [[Harmony Korine]] released ''[[The Diary of Anne Frank Pt II]]'', a 40-minute three-screen collage featuring a man in blackface dancing and singing "[[My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean]]".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-09-14 |title=Act Da Fool: Strange Fruit Meet High Fashion |url=https://www.diverseeducation.com/opinion/article/15091948/act-da-fool-strange-fruit-meet-high-fashion |access-date=2024-04-11 |website=Diverse: Issues In Higher Education |language=en-us}}</ref>

Blackface and minstrelsy serve as the theme of African American director [[Spike Lee]]'s film ''[[Bamboozled]]'' (2000). It tells of a disgruntled black television executive who reintroduces the old blackface style in a series concept in an attempt to get himself fired and is instead horrified by its success.

In 2000, [[Jimmy Fallon]] performed in blackface on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'', imitating former cast member [[Chris Rock]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2020/06/02/jimmy-fallon-addresses-snl-blackface-controversy/3122263001/ |title=Jimmy Fallon addresses 'SNL' blackface controversy: 'I'm not a racist' |date=June 2, 2020 |first1=Sara |last1=Moniuszko |website=USAToday.com |access-date=October 5, 2021}}</ref> That same year, [[Harmony Korine]] directed the short film ''Korine Tap'' for ''Stop For a Minute'', a series of short films commissioned by [[Dazed & Confused (Magazine)|Dazed & Confused]] magazine and FilmFour Lab. The film featured Korine tap dancing while wearing blackface.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2001-01-12 |title=Moloney creates short for FilmFour project |url=https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/11-january-2001/moloney-creates-short-for-filmfour-project/ |access-date=2024-04-11 |website=Design Week |language=en-UK}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13UYX6UiYN0 |title=Korine Tap / Stop For a Minute (2000) Directed by Harmony Korine |language=en |access-date=2024-04-11 |via=www.youtube.com}}</ref>

[[Jimmy Kimmel]] donned black paint and used an exaggerated, accented voice to portray [[National Basketball Association|NBA]] player [[Karl Malone]] on ''[[The Man Show]]'' in 2003. Kimmel repeatedly impersonated the NBA player on ''The Man Show'' and even made an appearance on [[Crank Yankers]] using his exaggerated [[African-American Vernacular English|Ebonics/African-American Vernacular English]] to prank call about [[Beanie Babies]].{{cn|date=February 2025}}

In November 2005, controversy erupted when journalist [[Steve Gilliard]] posted a photograph on his blog. The image was of African American [[Michael Steele]], a politician, then a candidate for [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]]. It had been doctored to include bushy, white eyebrows and big, red lips. The caption read, "I's simple [[Sambo (racial term)|Sambo]] and I's running for the big house." Gilliard, also African-American, defended the image, commenting that the politically conservative Steele has "refused to stand up for his people".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.knoxstudio.com/shns/story.cfm?pk=SAMBOBLOG-10-27-05&cat=WW|title=Virginia governor's candidate pulls ads after 'Sambo' attack|author=James W. Brosnan|publisher=Scripps Howard News Service|date=October 27, 2005|access-date=January 31, 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080113191856/http://www.knoxstudio.com/shns/story.cfm?pk=SAMBOBLOG-10-27-05&cat=WW |archive-date = January 13, 2008}}</ref> (See {{section link|Uncle Tom|Epithet}}.)

In a 2006 reality television program, ''[[Black. White.]]'', white participants wore blackface makeup and black participants wore whiteface makeup in an attempt to be better able to see the world through the perspective of the other race.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/ae/tv/article/On-TV-Black-White-is-uncomfortable-1197650.php#ixzz1jHpwtNJN |title=On TV: 'Black. White.' is uncomfortable, revealing reality TV |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |first=Melanie |last=McFarland |date=March 6, 2006 |access-date=August 7, 2013}}</ref>

In 2007, [[Sarah Silverman]] performed in blackface for a skit from ''[[The Sarah Silverman Program]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/12/entertainment/sarah-silverman-blackface-scli-intl/index.html |title=Sarah Silverman says blackface sketch got her fired from movie |date=August 12, 2019 |first1=Rob |last1=Picheta |website=CNN.com |access-date=October 5, 2021}}</ref>

''[[A Mighty Heart (film)|A Mighty Heart]]'' is a 2007 American film featuring [[Angelina Jolie]] playing [[Mariane Pearl]], the wife of the kidnapped ''[[The Wall Street Journal|Wall Street Journal]]'' reporter [[Daniel Pearl]]. Mariane is of multiracial descent, born from an Afro-Chinese-Cuban mother and a Dutch Jewish father. She personally cast Jolie to play herself, defending the choice to have Jolie "sporting a spray tan and a corkscrew wig".<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/22/AR2007062202029.html | title=A Part Colored by History| date=June 23, 2007| last1=Wiltz| first1=Teresa}}</ref> Criticism of the film came in large part for the choice to have Jolie portraying Mariane Pearl in this manner. Defense of the casting choice was in large part due to Pearl's mixed racial heritage, critics claiming it would have been impossible to find an Afro-Latina actress with the same crowd-drawing caliber of Jolie. Director [[Michael Winterbottom]] defended his casting choice in an interview, "To try and find a French actress who's half-Cuban, quarter-Chinese, half-Dutch who speaks great English and could do that part better - I mean, if there had been some more choices, I might have thought, 'Why don't we use that person?'...I don't think there would have been anyone better".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/mighty-heart-casting-stirs-debate-over-race/|title="Mighty Heart" casting stirs debate over race|date=June 27, 2007|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref>

A 2008 imitation of [[Barack Obama]] by American comedian [[Fred Armisen]] (of German, Korean, and Venezuelan descent) on the popular television program ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' caused some stir, with ''[[The Guardian]]''{{'s}} commentator asking why ''SNL'' did not hire an additional black actor to do the sketch; the show had only one black cast member at the time.<ref>{{cite news |first=Hannah |last=Pool |newspaper=The Guardian |date=February 26, 2008 |title=Blacked-up Obama is a pretty weak joke |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/tvandradioblog/2008/feb/26/blackedupobamaisaprettywe}}</ref>

Also in 2008, [[Robert Downey Jr.]]'s character Kirk Lazarus appeared in [[brownface]] in the [[Ben Stiller]]-directed film ''[[Tropic Thunder]]''. As with ''Trading Places'', the intent was satire; specifically, blackface was ironically employed to humorously mock one of the many [[:Category:Entertainment scandals|foibles of Hollywood]] rather than black people themselves. Downey was even nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 29, 2020 |title=Tropic Thunder: Why RDJ's Blackface Wasn't Controversial |url=https://screenrant.com/tropic-thunder-robert-downey-blackface-no-controversy-why/ |access-date=2022-03-02 |website=ScreenRant |language=en-US}}</ref> According to Downey, "90 per cent of my black friends were like, 'Dude, that was great.' I can't disagree with [the other 10 per cent], but I know where my heart lies."<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Sharf |first1=Zack |date=January 21, 2020 |title=Robert Downey Jr. Has No Regrets Over 'Tropic Thunder' Blackface: 'It Blasted the Cap on the Issue' |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2020/01/robert-downey-jr-tropic-thunder-blackface-regrets-1202204722/ |access-date=2022-03-02 |website=IndieWire |language=en}}</ref>

Once more in 2008, comedian [[Frank Caliendo]], who is well known for his [[Impressionist (entertainment)|impressions]], used blackface to do an impression of former NBA player and sports analyst [[Charles Barkley]]. Caliendo defended his use of blackface by comparing it positively to [[Ted Danson]]'s infamous use of it in 1993 at a [[New York Friars Club|Friars]] [[Roast (comedy)|Roast]], which Caliendo said was "the wrong thing to do".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.recordnet.com/story/entertainment/events/2008/04/10/frank-caliendo-thrives-with-little/52454865007/|title=Frank Caliendo thrives with a little help from his (impersonated) friends|last=Rotter|first=Joshua|publisher=[[The Record (Stockton, California)|The Record]]|date=April 10, 2008|accessdate=February 11, 2025}}</ref> 

In the November 2010 episode "[[List of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia episodes#Season 6 (2010)|Dee Reynolds: Shaping America's Youth]]", the TV show ''[[It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia]]'' comically explored if blackface could ever be done "right". One of the characters, Frank Reynolds insists that [[Laurence Olivier]]'s blackface performance in [[Othello (1965 British film)|his 1965 production of ''Othello'']] was not offensive, while Dennis claimed it "distasteful" and "never okay". In the same episode, the gang shows their [[fan film]], ''[[Lethal Weapon]] 5'', in which the character Mac appears in blackface.<ref>{{cite news|last=Sims |first=David |url=https://www.avclub.com/its-always-sunny-in-philadelphia-dee-reynolds-shapin-1798166506 |title="Dee Reynolds: Shaping America's Youth"|newspaper=The A.V. Club |date=July 5, 2011 |access-date=July 11, 2011}}</ref> In the season 9 episode "The Gang make Lethal Weapon 6", Mac once again dons black make-up, along with Dee, who plays his character's daughter in the film. Later in the series, the episode "[[The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 7|The Gang Makes ''Lethal Weapon 7'']]" addresses the topic again along with the removal of their films from the library.

A 2012 [[Popchips]] commercial showing actor [[Ashton Kutcher]] with brown make-up on his face impersonating a stereotypical Indian person generated controversy and was eventually pulled by the company after complaints of racism.<ref>{{cite web|last=Potts|first=Kimberly|url=https://thewrap.com/ashton-kutcher-brownface-ad-pulled-38346/|title=Ashton Kutcher 'Brownface' Ad With Indian Character 'Raj' Pulled (Video)|publisher=The Wrap|date=May 3, 2012|access-date=May 13, 2015}}</ref> In the TV series ''[[Mad Men]]'', set in the 1960s in New York City, the character [[Roger Sterling]] appears in blackface in the season 3 episode "My Old Kentucky Home". [[Julianne Hough]] attracted controversy in October 2013 when she donned blackface as part of a Halloween costume depicting the character of "Crazy Eyes" from ''[[Orange Is the New Black]]''.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/29/derek-hough-blackface_n_4175160.html | work=Huffington Post | first=Cavan | last=Sieczkowski | title=Derek Hough Defends Sister In Blackface Controversy | date=October 29, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/julianne-hough-slammed-for-donning-black-face-halloween-costume/ | work=Fox News | title=Julianne Hough slammed for donning 'black face' Halloween costume | date=October 28, 2013}}</ref> Hough later apologized, stating on Twitter: "I realize my costume hurt and offended people and I truly apologize."<ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2013/10/27/julianne-hough-apologizes-for-halloween-costume/3272201/ "Julianne Hough dons blackface for Halloween, apologizes"]. ''USA Today''. October 27, 2013. Retrieved on November 26, 2015.</ref>

[[Billy Crystal]] impersonated [[Sammy Davis Jr.]] in the [[84th Academy Awards|2012 Oscars]] opening montage. The scene depicts Crystal in black face-paint wearing an oiled wave wig while talking to [[Justin Bieber]]. In the scene Crystal leaves a parting remark to Bieber, "Have fun storming the [[Führer]]", a poor association to his famous line in ''[[The Princess Bride (film)|The Princess Bride]]'', "Have fun storming the castle".
The skit was remarked as poor taste, considering he was chosen as the "safer" choice after [[Eddie Murphy]] bowed out following producer and creative partner [[Brett Ratner]]'s homophobic remarks.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/celebritology/post/billy-crystal-how-bad-was-his-oscar-hosting/2012/02/27/gIQATYtedR_blog.html | title=Billy Crystal: How bad was his Oscar hosting?| newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/eddie-murphy-oscars-brett-ratner-259387|title=Eddie Murphy Exits as Oscar Host|website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=November 9, 2011|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref>

[[Victoria Foyt]] was accused of using blackface in the trailer for her [[Young adult fiction|young adult]] novel ''[[Save the Pearls: Revealing Eden]]'' as well as in the book and its artwork.<ref name="TheFrisky">[http://www.thefrisky.com/2012-07-27/today-in-racism-ya-series-save-the-pearls-employs-offensive-blackface-and-bizarre-racist-stereotypes-plot/ Today In Racism: YA Series "Save The Pearls" Employs Offensive Blackface And Bizarre Racist Stereotypes Plot] The Frisky</ref><ref>[http://www.xojane.com/issues/save-the-pearls-revealing-eden-ya-novel-racist Is YA Novel "Save the Pearls" Straight-Up Racist or Just Misguided?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120801020311/http://www.xojane.com/issues/save-the-pearls-revealing-eden-ya-novel-racist |date=August 1, 2012 }} XOJane</ref>

Performer [[Chuck Knipp]] (who is white and gay) has used drag, blackface, and broad racial caricature to portray a character named "Shirley Q. Liquor" in his cabaret act, generally performed for all-white audiences. Knipp's outrageously stereotypical character has drawn criticism and prompted demonstrations from Black, Gay and [[transgender]] activists.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060214030028/http://www.gaycitynews.com/gcn_308/blackfacedragagain.html Blackface Drag Again Draws Fire]}} ''Gay City News''. Volume 3, Issue 308 | February 19–25, 2004</ref>

The [[Metropolitan Opera]], based in New York City, used blackface in productions of the opera ''[[Otello]]'' until 2015,<ref>[https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/04/429366961/metropolitan-opera-to-drop-use-of-blackface-style-makeup-in-otello "Metropolitan Opera To Drop Use Of Blackface-Style Makeup In 'Otello'"]. ''NPR.org''. August 4, 2015. Retrieved on November 26, 2015.</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/01/arts/music/debating-otello-blackface-and-casting-trends.html|title=Debating 'Otello{{sic|,'|hide=y}} Blackface and Casting Trends|date=October 1, 2015|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|last1=Brantley|first1=Ben|last2=Tommasini|first2=Anthony}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/20/arts/music/an-otello-without-the-blackface-nods-to-modern-tastes.html|title=An 'Otello' Without Blackface Highlights an Enduring Tradition in Opera|date=September 20, 2015|newspaper=The New York Times|last1=Cooper|first1=Michael}}</ref> though some have argued that the practice of using dark makeup for the character did not qualify as blackface.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/music/how-do-african-american-singers-feel-about-blackface-in-opera/2015/10/16/fbbaa318-7176-11e5-9cbb-790369643cf9_story.html|title=The rarity of black faces, not 'Otello' in blackface, should be issue in opera|date=October 16, 2015|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref>

On February 1, 2019, images from [[Governor of Virginia]] [[Ralph Northam]]'s medical school yearbook were published on the far-right website ''[[Big League Politics]]''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gabriel|first= Trip|author2= Michael M. Grynbaum|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/04/us/politics/northam-fairfax-big-league-politics.html |title=With Northam Picture, Obscure Publication Plays Big Role in Virginia Politics|newspaper=The New York Times|date= February 4, 2019|access-date= February 10, 2019}}</ref><ref name="scoop of a lifetime">{{cite news |last=Farhi |first=Paul |title=A tip from a 'concerned citizen' helps a reporter land the scoop of a lifetime |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/a-tip-from-a-concerned-citizen-helps-a-reporter-land-the-scoop-of-a-lifetime/2019/02/03/e30762ea-2765-11e9-ad53-824486280311_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=February 3, 2019 |date=February 3, 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/reports-virginia-governor-s-yearbook-page-had-photo-men-blackface-n966066|author1=Dareh Gregorian|author2=Hallie Jackson|title=Va. Gov. Northam's yearbook pic of men in blackface, Klan robe spurs calls for his resignation|work=NBCNews.com|date=February 2, 2019|access-date=February 15, 2019}}</ref> The photos showed an image of Northam in blackface and an unidentified person in a [[Ku Klux Klan]] hood on Northam's page in the yearbook.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/va-gov-northams-medical-school-yearbook-page-shows-men-in-blackface-kkk-robe/2019/02/01/517a43ee-265f-11e9-90cd-dedb0c92dc17_story.html|title=Gov. Ralph Northam 'deeply sorry' after photo emerges from his 1984 yearbook showing blackface, KKK hood|last1=Vozzella|first1=Laura|last2=Morrison|first2=Jim|last3=Schneider|first3=Gregory S.|date=February 1, 2019|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=February 1, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://pilotonline.com/news/government/politics/virginia/article_67fdd682-2662-11e9-a7d1-c7ed70e09b50.html|title=Ralph Northam yearbook page shows men in blackface and KKK robe|date=February 1, 2019|work=Virginian-Pilot|access-date=February 1, 2019|archive-date=February 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190201212901/https://pilotonline.com/news/government/politics/virginia/article_67fdd682-2662-11e9-a7d1-c7ed70e09b50.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/01/politics/northam-blackface-photo/index.html|title=Virginia governor's yearbook page shows 2 people in blackface, KKK garb|last=Kelly|first=Caroline|date=February 1, 2019|publisher=CNN|access-date=February 1, 2019}}</ref> A spokesman for [[Eastern Virginia Medical School]] confirmed that the image appeared in its 1984 yearbook.<ref name="APWTOP2119"/> Shortly after the news broke, Northam apologized for appearing in the photo.<ref name="APWTOP2119">[https://wtop.com/virginia/2019/02/virginia-governors-1984-yearbook-page-shows-racist-imagery/ Virginia governor confirms 1984 yearbook page with racist imagery] (Associated Press)</ref>

Blackface performances are not unusual within the Latino community of Miami. As Spanish-speakers from different countries, ethnic, racial, class, and educational backgrounds settle in the United States, they have to grapple with being re-classified vis-a-vis other American-born and immigrant groups. Blackface performances have, for instance, tried to work through U.S. racial and ethnic classifications in conflict with national identities. A case in point is the representation of Latino and its popular embodiment as a stereotypical Dominican man.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Brownface of Latinidad in Cuban Miami |first1=Ariana |last1=Hernandez-Reguant |first2=Jossianna |last2=Arroyo |publisher=Cuba Counterpoints |date=July 13, 2015 |url=http://cubacounterpoints.com/archives/1600 |access-date=December 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104002025/http://cubacounterpoints.com/archives/1600 |archive-date=November 4, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the wake of [[George Floyd protests|protests over the treatment of African-Americans]] following the [[murder of George Floyd]] in 2020, episodes of popular television programs featuring characters in blackface were pulled from circulation. This includes ''[[The Golden Girls]]'', ''[[The Office (American TV series)|The Office]]'', ''[[It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia]]'', ''[[30 Rock]]'', ''[[Community (TV series)|Community]]'', and ''[[Scrubs (TV series)|Scrubs]]'', among others.<ref>{{cite web|last=Shafer|first=Ellise|title='Golden Girls' Episode With Blackface Scene Removed From Hulu|url=https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/golden-girls-blackface-hulu-removed-1234692451/|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=June 28, 2020|language=en}}</ref>

==== Stunt doubles ====
White men are the main source of stunt doubles in American TV and film productions. The practice of a male performer portraying standing-in for a female actor is known as "wigging". When the stunt performer is made up to look like another race, the practice is called a "paint down". Stunt performers [[Janeshia Adams-Ginyard]] and Sharon Schaffer have equated it in 2018 with blackface minstrelsy.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Robb |first1=David |title=Stuntwomen Panel: Evangeline Lilly Says She Was Intentionally Injured While Filming 'Lost' |url=https://deadline.com/2018/05/stuntwomen-panel-evangeline-lilly-deven-macnair-1202393558/ |access-date=December 21, 2018 |work=Deadline |date=May 17, 2018 |language=en}}</ref>

==== Digital media ====
{{POV section|date=March 2023}}
Digital media provide opportunities to inhabit and perform Black identity without actually painting one's face, which, in a way, some critics have likened to blackface and minstrelsy. In 1999, Adam Clayton Powell III coined the term "high-tech blackface" to refer to stereotypical portrayals of [[List of black video game characters|black characters in video games]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/10/21/technology/blood-gore-sex-and-now-race.html|title=Blood, Gore, Sex and Now: Race|last=Marriot|first=Michael|date=October 21, 1999|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 12, 2016}}</ref> David Leonard writes, "The desire to 'be Black' because of the stereotypical visions of strength, athleticism, power and sexual potency all play out within the virtual reality of sports games." Leonard's argument suggests that players perform a type of [[identity tourism]] by controlling Black avatars in sports games.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Leonard|first=David|title=High Tech Blackface&nbsp;– Race, Sports Video Games and Becoming the Other|journal=Intelligent Agent|volume=4|issue=4}}</ref> Phillips and Reed argue that this type of blackface "is not only about whites assuming Black roles, nor about exaggerated performances of blackness for the benefit of a racist audience. Rather, it is about performing a version of blackness that constrains it within the boundaries legible to [[white supremacy]]."<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Phillips|first1=Amanda|last2=Reed|first2=Alison|year=2013|title=Additive Race: Colorblind Discourses of Realism in Performance Capture Technologies|journal=Digital Creativity |volume=24|issue=2}}</ref>

In addition, writers such as [[Lauren Michele Jackson]], Victoria Princewill and [[Shafiqah Hudson]] criticized non-Black people sharing animated images, or [[GIF]]s, of Black people or Black-skinned [[emoji]]s, calling the practice "digital blackface".<ref>{{cite news|last=Jackson|first=Lauren Michele|date=August 2, 2017|title=We Need to Talk About Digital Blackface in Reaction GIFs|work=[[Teen Vogue]]|url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/digital-blackface-reaction-gifs|access-date=December 1, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Princewill|first=Victoria|date=August 14, 2017|title=Is it OK to use black emojis and gifs?|work=[[BBC]]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-40931479/is-it-ok-to-use-black-emojis-and-gifs|access-date=September 7, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=July 8, 2018|title=Why are memes of black people reacting so popular online?|url=http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/jul/08/why-are-memes-of-black-people-reacting-so-popular-online|access-date=March 16, 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en}}</ref> Writers [[Amanda Hess#The New York Times|Amanda Hess]] and Shane O'Neill have elaborated on their work, pointing out that GIFs of women of color, in particular, have been most frequently used to express user's emotions online. Hess and O'Neill also suggest that the emoji app [[Bitstrips|Bitmoji]] uses "black emotional reactions and verbal expressions" and designs them to fit non-Black bodies and faces. Writer [[Manuel Arturo Abreu]] refers to this phenomenon as "online imagined Black English", where non-Black users engage in [[African-American Vernacular English|African American Vernacular English]], or AAVE, on the internet without understanding the full context of the particular phrase being used.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hess |first1=Amanda |last2=O’Neill |first2=Shane |title=Video: The White Internet's Love Affair With Digital Blackface |url=https://www.nytimes.com/video/arts/100000005615988/the-white-internets-love-affair-with-digital-blackface.html |work=The New York Times |date=23 December 2017 }}</ref>

Following these critiques, the term "digital blackface" has since evolved with the rise of other social media and digital media technologies. In 2020, writer Francesa Sobande wrote on the digital representations of Black people, defining digital blackface as "encompassing online depictions and practices that echo the anti-Black underpinnings of [[Minstrel show|minstrelsy shows]] involving non-Black people 'dressing up' and 'performing' as though they are Black". Sobande's argument suggests that this acts as a "digital expression of the oppression that Black people face" outside of the internet, where they can be viewed as an objectified type of "[[Commodity#Commodification of labor|commodity or labor tool]]".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sobande|first=Francesca|date=January 22, 2021|title=Spectacularized and Branded Digital (Re)presentations of Black People and Blackness|journal=Television & New Media|volume=22|issue=2|pages=131–146|language=en|doi=10.1177/1527476420983745|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Since the criticisms made by these writers, instances of digital blackface have varied in type across the internet. In 2016, a controversy emerged over social media app [[Snapchat]]'s [[Bob Marley]] filter, which allowed users to superimpose dark skin, dreadlocks, and a knitted cap over their own faces.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2016/04/20/snapchat-under-fire-blackface-filter/83284206|title=Snapchat under fire for Marley filter called blackface|last=Graham|first=Jefferson|date=April 21, 2016|access-date=October 12, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://fortune.com/2016/04/20/snapchat-bob-marley-filter-blackface/|title=Is Snapchat's New Bob Marley Filter Just Blackface?|last=Brueck|first=Hilary|date=April 20, 2016|work=Fortune}}</ref> A number of controversies have also emerged about students at American universities sharing images of themselves appearing to wear blackface makeup.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://abc13.com/news/prairie-view-athlete-in-hot-water-after-blackface-post/1534688/|title='Blackface' Social Media Post Lands Prairie View A&M Athlete in Hot Water|last=Clemons|first=Tracy|date=September 30, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.wistv.com/story/33281715/blackface-or-charcoal-mask-college-investigates-photo-on-social-media|title=Blackface or charcoal mask? College investigates photo on social media|last1=Turnage|first1=Jeremy|date=September 29, 2016|last2=Mills|first2=Chad|access-date=October 14, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pennsylvania-blackface-idUSKCN1213PZ|title=Pennsylvania college students suspended over blackface video|last=Simpson|first=Ian|date=October 1, 2016|access-date=October 14, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/16/us/kansas-state-blackface-photo-trnd|title=Kansas State student apologizes but denies wearing blackface|last=Park|first=Madison|date=September 16, 2016|access-date=October 14, 2016}}</ref> In 2020, two high school students in Georgia were expelled after posting a "racially insensitive" [[TikTok]] video that used racial slurs and [[Stereotypes of African Americans|stereotypes]] about Black people.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Padilla |first1=Mariel |title=2 Georgia High Schoolers Posted Racist Video, Officials Say |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/18/us/racist-tik-tok-video-carrollton.html |work=The New York Times |date=19 April 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Miller|first=Joshua Rhett|date=April 20, 2020|title=Georgia students expelled for posting 'racist' TikTok video|url=https://nypost.com/2020/04/20/georgia-students-expelled-for-posting-racist-video-on-tiktok/|access-date=March 16, 2021|website=New York Post|language=en-US}}</ref>

Senior writer [[Jason Parham]] suggests that the social media app [[TikTok]], and its [[TikTok#Viral trends|viral trends and challenges]], has become a new medium for 21st century minstrelsy. Parham argues that "unlike Facebook and Twitter, where instances of digital blackface are either text-based or image-based, TikTok is a video-first platform" where "creators embody Blackness with an auteur-driven virtuosity—taking on Black rhythms, gestures, affect, slang". Examples of these controversial trends and challenges have included "the Hot Cheeto Girl", which is said to mimic [[stereotype]]s of Black and Latin women, the "#HowsMyForm" challenge, which plays on racist stereotypes of Black people and other racial groups, and other perceived instances of [[cultural appropriation]], such as "[[blackfishing]]".<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Parham |first1=Jason |title=TikTok and the Evolution of Digital Blackface |url=https://www.wired.com/story/tiktok-evolution-digital-blackface/ |magazine=Wired |date=4 August 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Magsino|first=Isiah|title=Teens won't stop posting racist videos and challenges on TikTok. Experts explain why the problem continues.|url=https://www.insider.com/tiktok-continues-to-have-problems-with-racist-videos-2020-5|access-date=March 16, 2021|website=Insider}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=Unpacking the Racism of Digital Blackface in the Information Age| date=January 27, 2021 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1tfKEVBcdY| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/b1tfKEVBcdY| archive-date=2021-10-30|language=en|access-date=March 16, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 2021, conversation around digital blackface gained further traction after [[Oprah Winfrey]]'s interview with [[Meghan, Duchess of Sussex|Meghan Markle]] and [[Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex|Prince Harry]], where Winfrey's reactions during the interview began to circulate the internet in the form of [[meme]]s. A widespread [[Instagram]] post by the Slow Factory Foundation, an activist group founded by [[Céline Semaan Vernon]], calling attention to digital blackface led to many critiques and criticisms about whether or not it was appropriate for non-Black people to continue sharing these images of Winfrey.<ref>{{Cite instagram|user=theslowfactory|date=March 9, 2021|title=📌What is digital blackface, and are you performing it?|postid=CMNcTx7F86a|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/instagram/theslowfactory/2525799470601850522_2525799467565142010 |archive-date=2021-12-23 |url-access=subscription|access-date=March 16, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Elizalde|first=Elizabeth|date=March 13, 2021|title=Organization says sharing Oprah interview memes is 'digital blackface'|url=https://nypost.com/2021/03/12/organization-says-sharing-oprah-interview-memes-is-digital-blackface/|access-date=March 16, 2021|website=New York Post|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Wang|first=Lydia|title=This Oprah Photo Is Quickly Becoming The Latest Example Of Digital Blackface|url=https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/03/10357290/oprah-meghan-markle-reaction-digital-blackface|access-date=March 16, 2021|website=www.refinery29.com|language=en}}</ref>

==== Universities ====

In 2021, music professor [[Bright Sheng]] [[Bright Sheng#Blackface controversy (2021)|stepped down from teaching]] a [[University of Michigan]] [[musical composition]] class, where he says he had intended to show how [[Giuseppe Verdi]] adapted [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Othello]]'' into his opera ''[[Otello]]'', after showing the [[Othello (1965 British film)|1965 film adaption]] of ''Othello'', whose actors received four [[38th Academy Awards|Oscar nominations]], but in which the white actor [[Laurence Olivier]] played [[Othello (character)|Othello]] in blackface, which caused controversy even at the time.<ref name=Reason2021-10-08a/><ref name=IHE2021-10-11a>{{Cite magazine|last=Flaherty|first=Colleen|date=October 11, 2021|title=Professor Not Teaching After Blackface 'Othello' Showing|url=https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2021/10/11/professor-not-teaching-after-blackface-%E2%80%98othello%E2%80%99-showing|access-date=2021-10-12|magazine=[[Inside Higher Ed]]|language=en-us|quote=}}</ref><ref name=Newsweek2021-10-09a>{{Cite magazine|last=Roche|first=Darragh|date=October 9, 2021|title=College Music Professor Steps Down After Showing Students 'Blackface' Othello|url=https://www.newsweek.com/college-music-professor-steps-down-students-blackface-othello-1637274|access-date=2021-10-11|magazine=[[Newsweek]]|language=en-us|quote=}}</ref> Sheng allegedly failed to give students any warning that the movie contained blackface, and his two subsequent apologies failed to satisfy his critics, with the wording of the second one causing further controversy.<ref name=Reason2021-10-08a/><ref name=Newsweek2021-10-09a/> There was disagreement over whether showing the blackface performance constituted racism.<ref name=Reason2021-10-08a/><ref name=WSWS2021-10-11a>{{cite web|author=International Youth and Students for Social Equality at the University of Michigan|date=October 8, 2021|title=Oppose the right-wing, racialist attack on composer Bright Sheng at University of Michigan|url=https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/10/11/she1-o11.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211011192144/https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/10/11/she1-o11.html |archive-date=October 11, 2021 |access-date=2021-10-12|publisher=[[World Socialist Web Site]]|language=en-us|quote=The denunciation of Olivier's performance, which he had previously given on the British stage, is particularly reactionary in that the actor was attempting to take on the timid, semi-racist approaches to the Othello character that had prevailed for a century and a half. In representing Othello as black, as an African, Olivier was rebuffing various commentators appalled at the thought of the white maiden Desdemona falling head over heels in love with a black man. As Elise Marks commented in a 2001 essay, "Olivier was one of the first light-skinned actors to play Othello in black makeup since 1814. ... In his autobiography, Olivier boasts that his black Othello was more genuine, more daring, more forceful than the 'pale'—he might almost have said 'diluted'—Othellos of his immediate predecessors."}}</ref> 

Evan Chambers, a professor of composition (as is Sheng), said "To show the film now, especially without substantial framing, content advisory and a focus on its inherent racism is in itself a racist act, regardless of the professor's intentions",<ref name=Reason2021-10-08a/> while David Gier, dean of the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, said: "Professor Sheng's actions do not align with our School's commitment to anti-racist action, diversity, equity and inclusion"<ref name=Newsweek2021-10-09a/> But Robert Soave, a senior editor at ''[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]]'' magazine, said that the university had violated the principle of [[academic freedom]], that showing the movie was neither a racist act nor approval of racism, and that the university owed Sheng an apology for unfairly maligning him, and he compared it to Sheng's earlier experience of surviving the Chinese [[Cultural Revolution]].<ref name=Reason2021-10-08a>{{Cite magazine|last=Soave|first=Robby|date=October 8, 2021|title=Michigan Students Accuse Celebrated Music Professor of Racism for Screening Othello|url=https://reason.com/2021/10/08/bright-sheng-university-of-michigan-othello-racism/|access-date=2021-10-12|magazine=[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]]|language=en-us|quote=One of Sheng's colleagues, Evan Chambers, another professor of composition, sided with the students and accused Sheng of committing a "racist act". "To show the film now, especially without substantial framing, content advisory and a focus on its inherent racism is in itself a racist act, regardless of the professor's intentions," said Chambers. "We need to acknowledge that as a community."... It is a violation of the university's cherished principles of academic freedom to punish Sheng for the choices he makes in the classroom. Screening a racially problematic film in an educational setting is neither a racist act nor an endorsement of racism. At this point, it is Sheng who is owed an apology from the broader university community for falsely maligning him. Imagine surviving the Cultural Revolution in communist China, only to reencounter it on an American university campus in 2021.}}</ref>

=== Black performers in blackface ===
[[File:Hotmikado.jpg|left|thumb|upright|A poster for the 1939 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] show ''[[The Hot Mikado (1939 production)|The Hot Mikado]]'' using blackface imagery]]

==== 19th century ====
By 1840, black performers also were performing in blackface makeup. [[Frederick Douglass]] generally abhorred blackface and was one of the first people to write against the institution of blackface minstrelsy, condemning it as racist in nature, with inauthentic, northern, white origins.<ref>Granville Ganter, [https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-113646013 "He made us laugh some": Frederick Douglass's humor] {{dead link|date=July 2021}} originally published in ''African American Review'', December 22, 2003.</ref> Douglass did, however, maintain: "It is something to be gained when the colored man in any form can appear before a white audience."<ref>Frederick Douglass, [http://utc.iath.virginia.edu/minstrel/miar03at.html Gavitt's Original Ethiopian Serenaders], originally published in ''The North Star'' (Rochester), June 29, 1849. Online in Stephen Railton, ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' and American Culture, University of Virginia. Accessed online January 31, 2008.</ref>

When all-black minstrel shows began to proliferate in the 1860s, they often were billed as "authentic" and "the real thing". These "colored minstrels"<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=199}}.</ref> always claimed to be recently freed slaves (doubtlessly many were, but most were not)<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=198, 236–37}}.</ref> and were widely seen as authentic. This presumption of authenticity could be a bit of a trap, with white audiences seeing them more like "animals in a zoo"<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=206}}.</ref> than skilled performers. Despite often smaller budgets and smaller venues, their public appeal sometimes rivaled that of white minstrel troupes. In March 1866, Booker and Clayton's Georgia Minstrels may have been the country's most popular troupe, and were certainly among the most critically acclaimed.<ref name="autogenerated4">{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=205}}.</ref>

These "colored" troupes&nbsp;– many using the name "Georgia Minstrels"<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=203}}.</ref>&nbsp;– focused on "plantation" material, rather than the more explicit social commentary (and more nastily racist stereotyping) found in portrayals of northern black people.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=179, 198}}.</ref> In the execution of authentic black music and the [[percussion instrument|percussive]], [[polyrhythm]]ic tradition of ''[[Juba dance|pattin' Juba]]'', when the only [[musical instrument|instruments]] performers used were their hands and feet, clapping and slapping their bodies and shuffling and stomping their feet, black troupes particularly excelled. One of the most successful black minstrel companies was [[Sam Hague]]'s Slave Troupe of Georgia Minstrels, managed by [[Charles Hicks]]. This company eventually was taken over by [[Charles Callender|Charles Callendar]]. The Georgia Minstrels toured the United States and abroad and later became [[J. H. Haverly|Haverly's Colored Minstrels]].<ref name="autogenerated4" />

From the mid-1870s, as white blackface minstrelsy became increasingly lavish and moved away from "Negro subjects", black troupes took the opposite tack.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=234}}.</ref> The popularity of the [[Fisk Jubilee Singers]] and other ''jubilee singers'' had demonstrated northern white interest in white religious music as sung by black people, especially [[spirituals]]. Some jubilee troupes pitched themselves as quasi-minstrels and even incorporated minstrel songs; meanwhile, blackface troupes began to adopt first jubilee material and then a broader range of southern black religious material. Within a few years, the word "jubilee", originally used by the Fisk Jubilee Singers to set themselves apart from blackface minstrels and to emphasize the religious character of their music, became little more than a synonym for "plantation" material.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=236–37, 244}}.</ref> Where the jubilee singers tried to "clean up" Southern black religion for white consumption, blackface performers exaggerated its more exotic aspects.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=243}}.</ref>

African-American blackface productions also contained buffoonery and comedy, by way of self-parody. In the early days of African-American involvement in theatrical performance, black people could not perform without blackface makeup, regardless of how dark-skinned they were. The 1860s "colored" troupes violated this convention for a time: the comedy-oriented endmen "corked up", but the other performers "astonished" commentators by the diversity of their hues.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=200}}.</ref> Still, their performances were largely in accord with established blackface stereotypes.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=180}}.</ref>

These black performers became stars within the broad African-American community, but were largely ignored or condemned by the [[African-American upper class|black bourgeoisie]]. [[James Monroe Trotter]] &nbsp;– a middle-class African American who had contempt for their "disgusting caricaturing" but admired their "highly musical culture"&nbsp;– wrote in 1882 that "few ... who condemned black minstrels for giving 'aid and comfort to the enemy'" had ever seen them perform.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=226–28}}, including the quotation from Trotter.</ref> Unlike white audiences, black audiences presumably always recognized blackface performance as caricature, but took pleasure in seeing their own culture observed and reflected, much as they would half a century later in the performances of [[Moms Mabley]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|pp=258–59}}.</ref>

Despite reinforcing racist stereotypes, blackface minstrelsy was a practical and often relatively lucrative livelihood when compared to the menial labor to which most black people were relegated. Owing to the discrimination of the day, "corking (or blacking) up" provided an often singular opportunity for African-American musicians, actors, and dancers to practice their crafts.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=195}}.</ref> Some minstrel shows, particularly when performing outside the South, also managed subtly to poke fun at the racist attitudes and double standards of white society or champion the [[Abolitionism in the United States|abolitionist]] cause. It was through blackface performers, white and black, that the richness and exuberance of [[African-American music]], humor, and dance first reached mainstream, white audiences in the U.S. and abroad.<ref name="Watkins 82" /> It was through blackface minstrelsy that African American performers first entered the mainstream of American show business.<ref>{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=228}}.</ref> Black performers used blackface performance to satirize white behavior. It was also a forum for the sexual [[double entendre]] gags that were frowned upon by white moralists. There was often a subtle message behind the outrageous vaudeville routines:

{{blockquote|The laughter that cascaded out of the seats was directed parenthetically toward those in America who allowed themselves to imagine that such 'nigger' showtime was in any way respective of the way we live or thought about ourselves in the real world.<ref name=fox>{{cite book |last=Fox |first=Ted |title=Showtime at the Apollo |location=Rhinebeck, NY |publisher=Mill Road Enterprises |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-9723700-1-1 |id={{OCLC|680471611|54084944|9393699}} |orig-year=1983|hdl=2027/uc1.32106017681500 }} {{subscription required}}</ref>{{Rp|5, 92–92, 1983 ed.}}}}

[[File:Bert Williams blackface 2.jpg|thumb|right|[[Bert Williams]] was the only black member of the [[Ziegfeld Follies]] when he joined them in 1910. Shown here in blackface, he was the highest-paid African American entertainer of his day.<ref name="autogenerated3">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=136}}.</ref>]]

==== 20th century ====
With the rise of vaudeville, [[The Bahamas|Bahamian]]-born actor and comedian [[Bert Williams]] became [[Florenz Ziegfeld Jr.|Florenz Ziegfeld]]'s highest-paid star and only African American star.<ref name="autogenerated3" /><ref>{{cite news|author-link=Margo Jefferson|first=Margo|last=Jefferson|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/13/arts/music/13vaud.html |title=Blackface Master Echoes in Hip-Hop|newspaper=The New York Times|date= October 13, 2004|access-date= February 2, 2008}}</ref>

In the [[Theatre Owners Booking Association|Theater Owners Booking Association]] (TOBA), an all-black vaudeville circuit organized in 1909, blackface acts were a popular staple. Called "Toby" for short, performers also nicknamed it "Tough on Black Actors" (or, variously, "Artists" or "Asses"), because earnings were so meager. Still, TOBA headliners like [[Tim Moore (comedian)|Tim Moore]] and Johnny Hudgins could make a very good living, and even for lesser players, TOBA provided fairly steady, more desirable work than generally was available elsewhere. Blackface served as a springboard for hundreds of artists and entertainers&nbsp;– black and white&nbsp;– many of whom later would go on to find work in other performance traditions. For example, one of the most famous stars of Haverly's European Minstrels was Sam Lucas, who became known as the "Grand Old Man of the [[Negro]] Stage".<ref>Johnson (1968). ''Black Manhattan'', p. 90. Quoted in {{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=218}}.</ref> Lucas later played the title role in the 1914 cinematic production of [[Harriet Beecher Stowe]]'s ''Uncle Tom's Cabin''.

From the early 1930s to the late 1940s, New York City's famous [[Apollo Theater]] in [[Harlem]] featured skits in which almost all black male performers wore the blackface makeup and huge white painted lips, despite protests that it was degrading from the NAACP. The comics said they felt "naked" without it.<ref name=fox />{{rp|4, 1983 ed.}}

The minstrel show was appropriated by the black performer from the original white shows, but only in its general form. Black people took over the form and made it their own. The professionalism of performance came from black theater. Some argue that the black minstrels gave the shows vitality and humor that the white shows never had. As the black social critic [[Amiri Baraka|LeRoi Jones]] has written:

{{blockquote|It is essential to realize that ... the idea of white men imitating, or caricaturing, what they consider certain generic characteristics of the black man's life in America is important if only because of the Negro's reaction to it. (And it is the Negro's ''reaction'' to America, first white and then black and white America, that I consider to have made him such a unique member of this society.)<ref name=leroy /> }}

The black minstrel performer was not only poking fun at himself but in a more profound way, he was poking fun at the white man. The [[cakewalk]] is caricaturing white customs, while white theater companies attempted to satirize the cakewalk as a black dance. Again, as LeRoi Jones notes:

{{blockquote|If the cakewalk is a Negro dance caricaturing certain white customs, what is that dance when, say, a white theater company attempts to satirize it as a Negro dance? I find the idea of white minstrels in blackface satirizing a dance satirizing themselves a remarkable kind of irony&nbsp;– which, I suppose is the whole point of minstrel shows.<ref name=leroy>{{cite book|first= Leroy|last= Jones|title= Blues People: The Negro Experience in White America and the Music that Developed from It|publisher= TMorrow Quill Paperbacks|year= 1963|location= NY|pages= [https://archive.org/details/bluespeoplenegroexp00bara/page/85 85–86]|isbn= 978-0-688-18474-2|url= https://archive.org/details/bluespeoplenegroexp00bara/page/85}}</ref> }}

=== Puerto Rico ===
During the 20th century, blackface was not an uncommon sight at parades in Puerto Rico.<ref name="PR">{{cite web |title=Carnaval 1962 : "Black face" y diablos. |url=http://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00063985/00001 |website=The University of Florida Digital Collections |publisher=El Mundo, UPRP |access-date=February 15, 2019}}</ref> In 2019, when blackface was prominently featured at a carnival in [[San Sebastián, Puerto Rico]], the town immediately faced backlash and criticism.<ref name="PR_2019">{{cite news |title=Cuestionan niños pintados de negro en Festival de la Novilla |url=https://www.primerahora.com/noticias/puerto-rico/nota/cuestionanninospintadosdenegroenfestivaldelanovilla-1322503/ |access-date=February 15, 2019 |work=Primera Hora |date=January 21, 2019 |language=es}}</ref>

== Authenticity ==
The degree to which blackface performance drew on authentic black culture and traditions is controversial. Black people, including slaves, were influenced by white culture, including white musical culture. Certainly this was the case with church music from very early times. Complicating matters further, once the blackface era began, some blackface minstrel songs unquestionably written by New York-based professionals (Stephen Foster, for example) made their way to the plantations in the South and merged into the body of black folk music.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=70–72}}.</ref>

It seems clear, however, that American music by the early 19th century was an interwoven mixture of many influences, and that blacks were quite aware of white musical traditions and incorporated these into their music.

{{blockquote|In the early years of the nineteenth century, white-to-black and black-to-white musical influences were widespread, a fact documented in numerous contemporary accounts.... [I]t becomes clear that the prevailing musical interaction and influences in nineteenth century America produced a black populace conversant with the music of both traditions.<ref name=powerblack>{{Closed access}}{{cite book |first=Samuel A. Jr. |last=Floyd |title=The Power of Black Music: Interpreting its History from Africa to the United States |url=https://archive.org/details/powerofblackmusi00floy/page/58 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801075707/https://archive.org/details/powerofblackmusi00floy/page/58 |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 1, 2020 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=1997 |location=New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/powerofblackmusi00floy/page/58 58] |edition=1st |isbn=978-0-19-508235-7 |id={{OCLC|72565771|801847202|466431378}} |orig-year=1995 |access-date=October 25, 2012 }} {{Dead link|date=November 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{Subscription required}}</ref>}}

Early blackface minstrels often said that their material was largely or entirely authentic black culture; John Strausbaugh, author of ''Black Like You'', said that such claims were likely to be untrue. Well into the 20th century, scholars took the stories at face value.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=69}}.</ref> [[Constance Rourke]], one of the founders of what is now known as [[cultural studies]], largely assumed this as late as 1931.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|pp=27–28}}.</ref> In the Civil Rights era there was a strong reaction against this view, to the point of denying that blackface was anything other than a white racist counterfeit.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=70}}.</ref> Starting no later than Robert Toll's ''Blacking Up'' (1974), a "third wave" has systematically studied the origins of blackface, and has put forward a nuanced picture: that blackface did, indeed, draw on black culture, but that it transformed, stereotyped, and caricatured that culture, resulting in often racist representations of black characters.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=70}}; {{Harvnb|Toll|1974}} ''passim''.</ref>

As discussed above, this picture becomes even more complicated after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], when many blacks became blackface performers. They drew on much material of undoubted slave origins, but they also drew on a professional performer's instincts, while working within an established genre, and with the same motivation as white performers to make exaggerated claims of the authenticity of their own material.

Author Strausbaugh summed up as follows: "Some minstrel songs started as Negro folk songs, were adapted by White minstrels, became widely popular, and were readopted by Blacks." "The question of whether minstrelsy was white or black music was moot. It was a mix, a mutt&nbsp;– that is, it was American music."<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/blacklikeyoublac00stra|title=''Black Like You: Blackface, Whiteface, Insult & Imitation in American Popular Culture''|access-date=March 4, 2008|last=John|first=Strausbaugh|isbn=978-1-58542-498-6|publisher=Tarcher|date=June 8, 2006}}</ref>

[[File:Golliwogg1.jpg|right|thumb|[[Florence Kate Upton]]'s "[[Golliwog]]" in 1895, described as "a horrid sight, the blackest gnome". Note the formal minstrel attire.]]

== "Darky" iconography ==
[[File:Ronson figural lighter.jpg|thumb|right|This elaborate [[Art Deco]] [[Ronson (company)|Ronson]] tabletop cigarette lighter, made in 1936,<ref>{{cite book |last= Stowe |first= David W. |title= Swing Changes: Big-Band Jazz in New Deal America |publisher= Harvard University Press |location= Cambridge |year= 1994 |isbn= 978-0-674-85825-1 |pages= [https://archive.org/details/swingchangesbigb00stow/page/131 131–132] |url= https://archive.org/details/swingchangesbigb00stow/page/131 }}</ref> is an example of an everyday consumer item rendered in classic darky iconographical style.]]

The darky icon itself&nbsp;– [[Googly eyes|googly-eyed]], with inky skin, exaggerated white, pink or red lips, and bright, white teeth&nbsp;– became a common motif in entertainment, children's literature, mechanical banks, and other toys and games of all sorts, [[cartoon]]s and [[comic strip]]s, advertisements, jewelry, textiles, postcards, sheet music, food branding and packaging, and other consumer goods.

In 1895, the American-born British children's book illustrator [[Florence Kate Upton]] created the [[Golliwog]] character. Upton modeled the character's rag doll-like appearance after a minstrel doll from her childhood in the United States. "Golly", as he later affectionately came to be called, had a jet-black face, woolly hair, bright red lips, and sported formal minstrel attire. The golliwog character quickly became popular in Britain, the US and other English-speaking countries, being used to sell toys, perfume and a variety of other consumer products. The word "golliwog" may have given rise to the [[ethnic slur]] "[[wog]]".<ref>[http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/golliwog/ "The Golliwog Caricature"], Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia, Ferris State University. Accessed online January 31, 2008.</ref>

[[File:1900s SM Coon Coon Coon.jpg|thumb|left|"Darky" iconography frequently adorned the covers of sheet music from the 1870s through the 1940s, but virtually disappeared by the 1950s.]]
[[File:Blackface todo list.jpg|thumb|Grocery list pegboard with a blackface graphic]]

U.S. cartoons from the 1930s and 1940s often featured characters in blackface gags as well as other racial and [[ethnic group|ethnic]] caricatures. The [[United Artists]] 1933 release ''[[Mickey's Mellerdrammer]]''&nbsp;– the name a corruption of "[[melodrama]]" thought to harken back to the earliest minstrel shows&nbsp;– was a film short based on a production of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' by the Disney characters. The advertising poster for the film shows Mickey with exaggerated, orange lips; bushy, white sidewhiskers.

[[File:Picaninny Freeze.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Cartoon of a small, naked, jet-black grinning child silhouetted against a full moon with exaggerated eyes and lips, holding a large frosty watermelon slice; text reads, "Eat Seeds 'n All! Piccaninny Freeze: 5¢: A Pal for Your Palate"|Reproduction of a can-sign advertising Picaninny Freeze, a frozen treat (1922)]]

In the U.S., by the 1950s, the [[NAACP]] had begun calling attention to such portrayals of African Americans and mounted a campaign to put an end to blackface performances and depictions. For decades, darky images had been seen in the branding of everyday products and commodities such as ''[[Pickaninny|Picaninny]] Freeze'', the [[Coon Chicken Inn]]<ref>[http://hollywood.pdx.edu/html/coon_chicken_inn.html Coon Chicken Inn] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140127021655/http://hollywood.pdx.edu/html/coon_chicken_inn.html |date=January 27, 2014 }} Photos and history of the restaurant chain.</ref> [[Chain store|restaurant chain]], and [[Use of nigger in proper names#Commercial products|Nigger Hair Tobacco]]. With the eventual successes of the modern day [[Civil rights movement]], such blatantly racist branding practices ended in the U.S., and blackface became an American [[taboo]]. However, blackface-inspired iconography continued to be used in popular media in other parts of the world.

==Notable instances outside the United States==

Over time, blackface and "darky" iconography became artistic and stylistic devices associated with [[Art Deco]] and the [[Jazz Age]]. By the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in Europe, where it was more widely tolerated, blackface became a kind of ''[[wikt:outré|outré]]'', [[camp (style)|camp]] convention in some artistic circles. ''[[The Black and White Minstrel Show]]'', a British musical variety show which featured blackface performers, was shown on the [[BBC]] from 1958 to 1978; its performers continued to conduct stage shows until 1989. Many of the songs were from the [[music hall]], [[Country music|country and western]], and folk traditions.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2223239.stm Minstrels founder Mitchell dies], BBC, August 29, 2002. Accessed February 2, 2008.</ref> Actors and dancers in blackface appeared in music videos such as [[Grace Jones]]'s "[[Slave to the Rhythm (Grace Jones song)|Slave to the Rhythm]]" (1985, also part of her touring piece ''A One Man Show''),<ref>Kershaw, Miriam, [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0425/is_n4_v56/ai_20544718/pg_1 Postcolonialism and androgyny: the performance art of Grace Jones] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614202810/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0425/is_n4_v56/ai_20544718/pg_1 |date=June 14, 2013 }}, ''Art Journal'', Winter 1997, [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0425/is_n4_v56/ai_20544718/pg_5 p. 5.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922172846/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0425/is_n4_v56/ai_20544718/pg_5 |date=September 22, 2008 }} Accessed online July 17, 2008, at FindArticles.com.</ref> [[Culture Club]]'s "[[Do You Really Want to Hurt Me]]" (1982)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Marks |first1=Craig |last2=Tannenbaum |first2=Rob |title=I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution |date=2011 |publisher=Dutton |location=New York |isbn=978-0-525-95230-5 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/iwantmymtvuncens00mark/page/126 126]–27 |url=https://archive.org/details/iwantmymtvuncens00mark |url-access=registration |quote=do you really want to hurt me blackface. |access-date=June 14, 2014}}</ref> and [[Taco (musician)|Taco]]'s "[[Puttin' On the Ritz]]" (1983).<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OG3PnQ3tgzY| title = Taco&nbsp;– Puttin' on the Ritz (Original Uncensored Version)| access-date = January 12, 2010| work = YouTube| date = May 17, 2007}}</ref>

[[Darlie]], a popular toothpaste brand by Hawley & Hazel and sold in parts of [[Asia]], used to be known as "Darkie" and used blackface imagery. In 1989, the blackface imagery was dropped and the product's name changed to "Darlie".<ref>{{cite news |last1=McGill |first1=Douglas C. |title=Colgate to Rename a Toothpaste |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/01/27/business/colgate-to-rename-a-toothpaste.html |access-date=2 January 2025 |date=27 January 1989}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title=Darkie Drops Offensive Name and Logo |work=Straits Times |date=1989-01-29 |page=6 |format=JPEG |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151204152741/http://download950.mediafire.com/jqp6xycsq1kg/2q4q1aikax00nnp/Darkie+19890129+p6.jpg |archive-date=2015-12-04 |url=http://download950.mediafire.com/jqp6xycsq1kg/2q4q1aikax00nnp/Darkie+19890129+p6.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref>

When trade and tourism produce a confluence of cultures, bringing differing sensibilities regarding blackface into contact with one another, the results can be jarring. When Japanese toymaker [[Sanrio]] Corporation exported a darky-icon character doll (the doll, [[List of Kinnikuman characters|Bibinba]], had fat, pink lips and rings in its ears)<ref>{{cite journal |first=Sherick A. |last=Hughes |title=The Convenient Scapegoating of Blacks in Postwar Japan: Shaping the Black Experience Abroad |journal=Journal of Black Studies |volume=33 |issue=3 |year=2003 |pages=335–53 |jstor=3180837 |doi=10.1177/0021934702238635|s2cid=145276221 }} p. 342.</ref> in the 1990s, the ensuing controversy prompted Sanrio to halt production.<ref>John Greenwald with reporting by Kumiko Makihara, {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080211113203/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,149882,00.html Japan Prejudice and Black Sambo]}}, ''Time Magazine'', June 24, 2001. Accessed online May 20, 2008.</ref>

Trademark for Conguitos, a confection manufactured by the LACASA Group<ref>[http://www.lacasa.es/web/conguitos/conguitos/conguitos.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070101064710/http://www.lacasa.es/web/conguitos/conguitos/conguitos.asp|archive-date=2007-01-01|title=Conguitos "Chocolates LACASA · Chocolates y turrones con Imaginación"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070101064710/http://www.lacasa.es/web/conguitos/conguitos/conguitos.asp |date=January 1, 2007 }}. ''lacasa.es''. Retrieved on November 26, 2015.</ref> features a tubby, little brown character with full, red lips. It became a topic of controversy after a [[Manchester City F.C.|Manchester City]] player compared his black teammate to the character.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/49788633|title=FA contacts Man City over Silva tweet|work=BBC Sport }}</ref> In Britain, the jam manufacturer [[Robertson's]] used the golliwog character as its advertising trademark for almost a century until retiring it in 2001. However, the debate still continues whether the golliwog should be banished in all forms from further commercial production and display, or preserved as a treasured childhood icon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prmuseum.com/kendrix/abroad.html |title=The African-American Image Abroad: Golly, It's Good! |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140813222148/http://www.prmuseum.com/kendrix/abroad.html |archive-date=August 13, 2014}}</ref>  In France, the chocolate powder [[Banania]]<ref>[http://www.banania.fr/ "Banania"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090624210004/http://www.banania.fr/ |date=June 24, 2009 }}. ''banania.fr''. Retrieved on November 26, 2015.</ref> still uses a face with large red lips derived from the [[Senegalese Tirailleurs]] as its emblem. The licorice brand Tabu, popularized by [[Perfetti Van Melle|Perfetti]] in the middle of the 20th century, introduced in the 1980s a cartoon minstrel mascot inspired by [[Al Jolson]]'s blackface performance in ''[[The Jazz Singer]]'', which is still in use today.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.perfettivanmelle.it/i-nostri-brand/tutti-i-brand/|title=I nostri Brand|date=September 11, 2017|website=Perfetti van Melle|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180829000210/http://www.perfettivanmelle.it/i-nostri-brand/tutti-i-brand/|archive-date=August 29, 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The influence of blackface on branding and advertising, as well as on perceptions and portrayals of black people, generally, can be found worldwide.

=== Arab world ===
{{Main article|Anti-Black racism in the Arab world#Use of blackface}}
{{Excerpt|Anti-Black racism in the Arab world|Use of blackface|inline=yes}}

=== Australia ===
[[File:Black and White Mistrals (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|260px|Black and White Minstrels Coburg, Melbourne, Australia, November 6, 1935]]
In October 2009, a talent-search skit on Australian TV's ''[[Hey Hey It's Saturday]]'' reunion show featured a tribute group for [[Michael Jackson]], the "Jackson Jive", in blackface, with the Michael Jackson character in [[Whiteface (performance)|whiteface]]. American performer [[Harry Connick Jr.|Harry Connick, Jr.]] was one of the guest judges and objected to the act, stating that he believed it was offensive to black people, and gave the troupe a score of zero. The show and the group later apologised to Connick, with the troupe leader of Indian descent stating that the skit was not intended to be offensive or racist.<ref>Evelyne Yamine, Gareth Trickey and Chris Scott. [http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/hey-hey-sees-red-over-black-face-jackson-5-act/story-e6frfmqr-1225784046716 Hey Hey sees red over black face Jackson 5 act] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926060121/http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/hey-hey-sees-red-over-black-face-jackson-5-act/story-e6frfmqr-1225784046716|date=September 26, 2013}} ''The Daily Telegraph'', October 8, 2009.</ref>

In 1999, [[Sam Newman]] wore blackface to impersonate legendary Indigenous [[Australian Football League]] footballer [[Nicky Winmar]] after Winmar did not attend a scheduled appearance on the program.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/eddie-mcguire-defends-sam-newmans-blackface-stunt/news-story/422a559e5513f4acb623b781f713c9aa|title=Eddie McGuire defends Sam Newman's blackface stunt|newspaper=News.com.au|date=February 25, 2020|access-date=2022-01-21|last1=Turner-Cohen|first1=Alex}}</ref>

=== Belgium and Netherlands ===
==== Christian traditions: Sinterklaas ====
[[File:Piet_Sancho.jpg|thumb|A Dutch man in [[Zwarte Piet]] costume]]
[[File:Sinterklaas aangekomen in Nijmegen 2016.webm|thumb|Sinterklaas and his Black Petes arrive by boat at the start of a procession in Nijmegen (Netherlands), 2016]]
In the Netherlands and Belgium, people annually celebrate [[Sinterklaas|St. Nicolas Eve]] with [[Sinterklaas]], the Dutch version of [[Saint Nicholas Day|Saint Nicholas]], accompanied by multiple helpers or [[Zwarte Piet|"Zwarte Pieten"]] (Black Petes). The first is typically an older white man similar to the American Santa, while the latter are usually adolescent boys and girls, and men and women in make-up and attire similar to the American blackface. The task of the Pieten is generally to entertain the children with jokes and pranks, and to help Sinterklaas distribute presents and dole out candy. The Pieten wear [[Moors|Moorish]] [[Page (servant)|page boy]] costumes and partake in parades.<ref name="BDF">{{cite book|last=Forbes|first=Bruce David|title=Christmas: A Candid History|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|year=2007|place=|page=54|quote=With Arab influence remaining among the Spanish population, Sinter Klaas had a Moorish assistant named Zwarte Piet, or Black Peter, an orphan who was pictured at times wearing a turban and a golden earring. Alternative explanations for his dark skin were that it was soot, from sliding down chimneys, or that he was a representation of the devil, who Saint Nicholas was able to conquer and force into his service. In annual observances over the years, Zwarte Piet was portrayed by a person in black face, and today some cultural commentators have criticized the legends and representations of Black Peter for racial stereotyping.}}</ref>

The Moorish Zwarte Piet character has been traced back to the middle of the 19th century when Jan Schenkman, a popular children's book author, added [[Saint Nicholas and his servant|a black servant to the Sinterklaas story]].<ref>{{cite web |title=De oudst bekende naam van Zwarte Piet: Pieter-mê-knecht (1850) |year=1850 |url=http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/cms/nl/nieuwsbriefteksten/nieuwsbriefuitgelicht/143677-de-oudst-bekende-naam-van-zwarte-piet-pieter-me-knecht-1850 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131030062242/http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/cms/nl/nieuwsbriefteksten/nieuwsbriefuitgelicht/143677-de-oudst-bekende-naam-van-zwarte-piet-pieter-me-knecht-1850 |archive-date=October 30, 2013 |access-date=November 12, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The ''Dag Sinterklaas'' TV series written by [[Hugo Matthysen]] in Belgium since the early 1990s provided a non-racial explanation: Zwarte Piet is black not because of his skin, because of sliding through the chimney to deliver presents. Twenty years later, [[Bart Peeters]] (the main actor in the series) stated it is thanks to Matthysen that in Belgium the Sinterklaas event has not been subject of a racism discussion as it has been in the Netherlands, because the series explains that the figure of Zwarte Piet has nothing to do with slavery.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://deredactie.be/cm/vrtnieuws/binnenland/1.1761344 |title="Hugo Matthysen heeft de puntjes op de i van de Sint gezet" |first=Inne |last=Verhoogen |publisher=[[Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie|VRT]] |date=23 October 2013 |language=nl}}</ref> However, the original and archetypal Zwarte Piet is believed to be a continuation of a much older custom in which people with blackface appeared in Winter Solstice rituals.<ref>{{harvnb|Bas|2013|pages=32, 34, 42–50}}</ref> In other parts of Western Europe and in Central Europe, black-faced and masked people also perform the role of [[companions of Saint Nicholas]], who is known as Nikolo in Austria, Nikolaus in Germany and Samichlaus in Switzerland. Also on [[St. Martin's Day|Saint Martin]]'s Eve, black-faced men go around in processions through [[Wörgl]] and the Lower [[Inn (river)|Inn]] Valley, in [[Tyrol (state)|Tyrol]].<ref name="Bas 2013 page=49">{{harvnb|Bas|2013|page=49}}</ref>

Due to Zwarte Piet's strong aesthetic resemblance to the archetypal US blackface, as well as the dynamics between the blackface servants and the white Sinterklaas,<ref>{{cite web| title =Sinterklaas:Illustraties| date= 1814–1948| url =http://www.kb.nl/uitgelicht/kinderboeken/sinterklaas/sinterklaas-ill.html| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20110607223042/http://www.kb.nl/uitgelicht/kinderboeken/sinterklaas/sinterklaas-ill.html| archive-date =June 7, 2011| access-date =November 29, 2007}}</ref> there has been international condemnation of the practice since the 1960s.<ref>Hoving, I. e.a. (2005) [http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/hovi002cult01_01/ ''Cultuur en migratie in Nederland. Veranderingen van het alledaagse 1950–2000''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191117103847/https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/hovi002cult01_01/ |date=November 17, 2019 }} Den Haag: Sdu Uitgevers p.253</ref> Some of the stereotypical elements have been toned down in recent decades as a result of increasing protests within the nation.<ref>{{cite news|last=Picheta|first=Rob |title=This country with a colonial history has a blackface problem|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/30/europe/belgium-blackface-colonial-history-intl/index.html|access-date=August 10, 2020|website=CNN|date=November 30, 2019 }}</ref> For example, there has been a transition towards applying only a few smears of 'soot' to the Piet's cheeks, rather than apply a full blackface.<ref name="zp-criticism">{{cite news |title=Criticism of Dutch 'Black Pete' tradition grows |url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/criticism-of-dutch-black-pete-tradition-grows |work=Fox News |agency=Associated Press |date=26 March 2015 }}</ref> The public support for changing the character was at 5% (versus 89% opposed to such changes) in 2013,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eenvandaag.nl/binnenland/47571/_zwarte_piet_niet_racistisch_en_moet_blijven_ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131023064631/http://www.eenvandaag.nl/binnenland/47571/_zwarte_piet_niet_racistisch_en_moet_blijven_ |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 23, 2013 |title=Zwarte Piet niet racistisch en moet blijven |publisher=EenVandaag |date=October 22, 2013 |access-date=January 5, 2014}}</ref> which increased to 26% (versus 68% opposed to such changes) in 2017.<ref>{{cite web |title=Draagvlak voor traditionele Zwarte Piet loopt terug |url=https://eenvandaag.avrotros.nl/panels/opiniepanel/alle-uitslagen/item/draagvlak-voor-traditionele-zwarte-piet-loopt-terug/ |website=EenVandaag |date=November 22, 2017 |language=nl}}</ref> However, in 2019, support for changing the character of Zwarte Piet underwent a slight decline, with opposition to changes increasing.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Klapwijk |first1=Petra |title=Weinig draagvlak voor roetveegpieten bij landelijke intocht Sinterklaas |url=https://eenvandaag.avrotros.nl/panels/opiniepanel/alle-uitslagen/item/weinig-draagvlak-voor-roetveegpieten-bij-landelijke-intocht-sinterklaas/ |website=EenVandaag |access-date=November 25, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191115110320/https://eenvandaag.avrotros.nl/panels/opiniepanel/alle-uitslagen/item/weinig-draagvlak-voor-roetveegpieten-bij-landelijke-intocht-sinterklaas/ |archive-date=November 15, 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
By 2019 public broadcaster NOS had phased out blackface in their reports on Sint Nikolaas<ref>{{cite web | last1=Takken | first1=Wilfred | title=Sinterklaasjournaal voltooit aftocht Zwarte Piet | work=NRC | date=September 17, 2019 | url=https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2019/09/17/sinterklaasjournaal-voltooit-aftocht-zwarte-piet-in-vijf-jaar-a3973631 }}</ref> although several municipalities still hosted zwarte piet in local festivities as late as 2024.<ref>{{cite web | title=Zwarte Piet ook dit jaar bij meerdere intochten: 'Wij nemen er geen genoegen mee' | date=November 5, 2024 | url=https://www.rtl.nl/nieuws/artikel/5478887/nieuwe-acties-tegen-zwarte-piet-op-komst-focus-op-het-goede-hart-van-het }}</ref> In 2020, following the [[murder of George Floyd]] and worldwide protests against racism, the Dutch prime minister [[Mark Rutte]] (who initially had strongly supported Zwarte Piet and condemned protests against suggestions for change) stated he had changed his mind on the matter and hoped the tradition would die out. Yet, he emphasized not intending to impose an official ban and noted he too retains sympathy towards those who do not want to let go of Zwarte Piet.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Krever|first1=Mick |first2= Amy |last2=Woodyatt|title=Dutch PM's opinions on blackface have undergone 'major changes' – but he won't ban it|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/05/europe/black-pete-netherlands-intl-scli/index.html|access-date=August 10, 2020|website=CNN}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=June 5, 2020|title=Dutch PM sceptical about Black Pete tradition|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52937623|access-date=August 10, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Carleton|first=Marie-Helene|title=Zwarte Piet: Black Pete is 'Dutch racism in full display'|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/zwarte-piet-black-pete-dutch-racism-full-display-181127153936872.html|access-date=August 10, 2020|website=www.aljazeera.com}}</ref>

=== Canada ===
Up until the early 2000s, white comedians sometimes used makeup to represent a black person, most often as a parody of an actual person. Many of these segments have been aired during the annual New Year's Eve TV special [[Bye Bye (TV series)|''Bye Bye'']]. For instance, the 1986 edition<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEPxh7HzsOY ''Bye Bye '86'']" (at 5:00, 19:33 and 56:03), ''YouTube'', December 31, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2018.</ref> features three such skits:
* a multi-ethnic version of the series ''Le temps d'une paix'' ([[:fr:Le Temps d'une paix|fr]]), in which comedienne [[Michèle Deslauriers]] played the character Mémère Bouchard as if she hailed from Africa;
* a reference to a joint concert by Quebec rocker [[Marjo (singer)|Marjo]] and U.S. diva [[Eartha Kitt]], in which Deslauriers and comic [[Dominique Michel]] alluded to Kitt spilling wine on Marjo during the show's press conference;<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JriHQV_mMmg <nowiki>Marjo humiliée par Ertha [sic] Kitt</nowiki>]", ''YouTube'', January 10, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2018.</ref>
* a mock [[American Express]] commercial spoofing president [[Ronald Reagan]]'s foreign policy, in which Deslauriers, Michel and actor [[Michel Côté (actor)|Michel Côté]] played Middle Eastern arms buyers.

The Montreal-based satiric group [[Rock et Belles Oreilles]] did its own blackface sketches, for instance when comedian [[Yves Pelletier]] disguised himself as comedian and show host [[Gregory Charles]], making fun of his energetic personality (not of his racial background) on his television game show ''Que le meilleur gagne''.<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mv3a-5JyCqs&t=13s Que le moins pire gagne]", ''YouTube'', September 10, 2009. Retrieved July 6, 2018.</ref> RBO also did a parody of a talk show where a stereotypical Haitian man (Pelletier again) was easily offended,<ref>"Les gens qui font l'énervement" (1994-1995 sketch). ''Rock et Belles Oreilles : The Coffret'', Jacques K. Primeau Productions, 2011.</ref> as well as a group parody of the Caribbean band [[La Compagnie Créole]]<ref>Untitled 1988 bonus sketch, ''Rock et Belles Oreilles : The Coffret'', Jacques K. Primeau Productions, 2011.</ref> and a sketch about the lines of African-American actors that were mangled in movie translations.<ref>Untitled 1989-1990 bonus sketch, ''Rock et Belles Oreilles : The Coffret'', Jacques K. Primeau Productions, 2011.</ref> Pelletier did another parody of Gregory Charles for the New Year's Eve TV special ''Le Bye Bye de RBO'' in 2006 (as an homage to Charles who had had a particularly successful year<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4r1SKx0Dug ''Bye Bye 2006'' RBO (5)]", ''YouTube'', June 2, 2010. Retrieved July 6, 2018.</ref>), along with a parody of Governor General [[Michaëlle Jean]].<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43uytw-_bck Le ''Bye Bye'' de RBO 2006 complet]" (at 14:23), ''YouTube'', August 6, 2017. Retrieved July 21, 2018.</ref> And in RBO's 2007 ''Bye Bye'', [[Guy A. Lepage]] impersonated a black Quebecer testifying during the [[Reasonable accommodation|Bouchard-Taylor hearings on cultural differences]],<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2-dmSdvT7U La conne mission Bouchard-Taylor : Rock et Belles Oreilles (RBO)]", ''YouTube'', January 15, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2018.</ref> while in another sketch, Lepage, Pelletier and [[Bruno Landry]] impersonated injured [[Darfur]] residents.<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TziwbczmmQ RBO ''Bye Bye 2007''&nbsp;– Tour du monde]", ''YouTube'', March 2, 2010. Retrieved July 21, 2018.</ref>

In September 2011, [[HEC Montréal]] students caused a stir when using blackface to "pay tribute" to Jamaican sprinter [[Usain Bolt]] during Frosh Week. The story went national, and was even covered on CNN.<ref>"[https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/GUJrcGFAxBI Blackface Controversy at Canadian School]", ''CNN'', September 20, 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2013.</ref> The university students were filmed in Jamaican flag colours, chanting "smoke weed" in a chorus.<ref>{{cite news |date=September 15, 2011 |title=Montreal University Students Don Blackface |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-university-students-don-blackface-1.1113695 |access-date=May 25, 2013}}</ref> The university later apologized for the lack of consciousness of its student body.<ref>{{cite news |date=September 15, 2011 |title=Montreal University Expresses Regret over Blackface Stunt |work=Toronto Star |location= |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2011/09/15/montreal_university_expresses_regret_over_blackface_stunt.html |access-date=May 25, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=September 17, 2011 |title=Blackface Blunder Backfires at Université de Montréal |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/supriya-dwivedi/blackface-blunder-backfir_b_965111.html |access-date=May 25, 2013 |website=HuffPost}}</ref>

In May 2013, comedian [[Mario Jean]] ([[:fr:Mario Jean|fr]]) took part in the award show ''Le gala des Olivier'', and imitated several fellow comics, donning blackface when he came to [[Boucar Diouf]] ([[:fr:Boucar Diouf|fr]]), a Senegalese-born storyteller.<ref>{{cite news |last1= |date=February 24, 2015 |title=Special Report: Examining the Blackface Debate |language=en-CA |work=CTV News Montreal |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/special-report-examining-the-blackface-debate/ |access-date=August 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=May 16, 2013 |title=Why the Hell Are Quebec Comedians Wearing Blackface? |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/nydia-dauphin/blackface-in-quebec_b_3276801.html |access-date=May 25, 2013 |website=HuffPost}}</ref> Many Quebec pundits defended the practice<ref name="charmaine">{{cite web |date=May 28, 2013 |title=Challenging 'Blackface' Is Not Quebec-Bashing |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/charmaine-nelson/blackface-in-quebec_b_3348561.html |access-date=May 28, 2013 |website=HuffPost}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=May 25, 2013 |title=You Can't Point out Racism in Quebec |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/nydia-dauphin/quebec-racism-reaction_b_3331530.html |access-date=May 25, 2013 |website=HuffPost}}</ref><ref>"{{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20170305042140/http://journalmetro.com/opinions/prochaine-station/315644/les-quebecois-tous-des-racistes/#selection-1241.0-1454.0 Les Québécois, tous des racistes]}}", ''Métro'', May 27, 2013; "[http://www.lapresse.ca/debats/chroniques/patrick-lagace/201305/27/01-4654718-une-fois-cest-un-noir-dans-un-gala.php Une fois c'est un noir dans un gala]", ''La Presse'', May 27, 2013. Retrieved June 7, 2018.</ref> and Diouf himself praised Jean for his open-mindedness.<ref>"[https://www.lapresse.ca/debats/nos-collaborateurs/boucar-diouf/201305/23/01-4653789-je-naime-pas-la-fraternite-raciale.php Je n'aime pas la fraternité raciale!]", ''La Presse'', May 25, 2013. Retrieved December 20, 2018.</ref>

In December 2013, white actor Joel Legendre ([[:fr:Joël Legendre|fr]]) performed in blackface in ''Bye Bye 2013'', as part of yet another parody<ref>"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOc9t-XKvRE Le choc de la transpiration&nbsp;– ''Bye Bye 2013'']", ''YouTube'', January 6, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2018.</ref> of Gregory Charles, this time as host of the variety show ''Le choc des générations''.

In December 2014, the satirical end-of-year production by [[Théâtre du Rideau Vert]], a mainstream theatre company, included a blackface representation of hockey player [[P. K. Subban|P.K. Subban]] by actor Marc Saint-Martin.<ref>{{cite news |last1= |first1= |date=December 17, 2014 |title=Un visage peint en noir crée la controverse |newspaper=La Presse |url=http://www.lapresse.ca/arts/spectacles-et-theatre/theatre/201412/17/01-4828973-un-visage-peint-en-noir-cree-la-controverse.php |access-date=December 21, 2014}}</ref> Despite some criticism the sketch was not withdrawn.<ref>{{cite news |date=December 21, 2014 |title=P.K. Subban Blackface in Théâtre du Rideau Vert Play Deemed Offensive by Some |work=CBC News |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/p-k-subban-blackface-in-théâtre-du-rideau-vert-play-deemed-offensive-by-some-1.2880720 |access-date=December 21, 2014}}</ref>

In March 2018, comedian of the year<ref>{{cite web |last1= |first1= |date=December 11, 2017 |title=Mariana Mazza remporte l'Olivier de l'année |url=http://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/b38ce151-7cf5-4d7d-946b-0aff7d133bbd__7C___0.html |access-date=December 20, 2018 |website=La Presse |publisher=}}</ref> Mariana Mazza ([[:fr:Mariana Mazza|fr]]), whose parents are Arab and Uruguayan, celebrated [[International Women's Day]] by putting up a post on her Facebook page which read "Vive la diversité" (Hurray for diversity) and was accompanied by a picture of herself surrounded by eight ethnic variations, including one in a wig and makeup that showed what she'd look like if she were black.<ref>"[https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/facebook/334519746647863/989960651103766 Je suis moi, mais nous sommes]", ''Facebook'', March 8, 2017. Retrieved on November 20, 2023.</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=March 10, 2017 |title=Une photo de Mariana Mazza fait polémique |url=https://www.tvanouvelles.ca/2017/03/10/une-photo-de-mariana-mazza-fait-polemique |access-date=December 20, 2018 |website=TVA Nouvelles |publisher=}}</ref> She immediately received a flurry of hate messages and death threats, and two days later, posted another message<ref>"[https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/facebook/334519746647863/993436274089537 Aux gens concernés et offusqués de ma photo]", ''Facebook'', March 10, 2017. Retrieved November 20, 2023.</ref> in which she apologized to whoever had been offended, adding that she had been "naively" trying to "express her support for all these communities".

In June 2018, theatre director [[Robert Lepage]] was accused of staging scenes that were reminiscent of blackface<ref name=":0">"[https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/8463985/moses-sumney-quits-montreal-jazz-fest-over-show-on-slavery Moses Sumney Quits Montreal Jazz Fest Over Show on Slavery]", ''Billboard'', July 4, 2018. Retrieved July 7, 2018.</ref> when he put together the show ''[[SLĀV]]'' at the Montreal Jazz Festival, notably because white performers were dressed as slaves as they picked cotton.<ref>"[https://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/music/jazz-fest-review-slav-misses-the-mark-and-precious-opportunity SLĀV Misses the Mark, and Precious Opportunity]", ''Montreal Gazette'', July 4, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.</ref> After two initial performances, lead singer [[Béatrice Bonifassi|Betty Bonifassi]] broke an ankle and the rest of the summer run was canceled, but later performances were nevertheless scheduled in other venues.<ref>"[https://globalnews.ca/news/4324408/controversial-slave-play-to-continue-run-across-quebec-in-2019/ Controversial Slave Play to Continue Run across Quebec in 2019]", ''Global News''. July 10, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.</ref> The controversy prompted further protests about the play ''Kanata'' that Lepage was to stage in Paris about the [[Canadian Indian residential school system]]&nbsp;– without resorting to any indigenous actors.<ref>"{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20210414012907/https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/07/14/robert-lepage-kanata-indigenous-appropriation_a_23482189/ Indigenous Artists Call out 'SLAV' Director Robert Lepage for New Show, 'Kanata']}}", ''HuffPost''. July 14, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.</ref> The project was briefly put on hold when investors pulled out, but the production eventually resumed as planned.<ref>"[https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/controversial-lepage-show-kanata-to-get-debut-in-paris/ Controversial Lepage Show 'Kanata' to Get Debut in Paris]", ''CTV News'', September 5, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.</ref>

In 2022, Netflix pulled [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5xZOOn5fYg episode 2] of the popular TV series ''[[Les Filles de Caleb|Les filles de Caleb]]'' (which takes place in the 19th century), because the main character, played by [[Roy Dupuis]], dons blackface makeup in order to act as magus [[Balthazar (magus)|Balthazar]] in a school [[Nativity of Jesus|Nativity]] play.<ref>"[https://www.ledevoir.com/culture/ecrans/763965/le-retrait-d-un-episode-des-filles-de-caleb-continue-de-faire-reagir Le retrait d'un épisode des 'Filles de Caleb' continue de faire réagir]", ''Le Devoir'', October 13, 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2023.</ref>

====Justin Trudeau blackface controversy====
In 2019, [[Time (magazine)|''Time'']] published a photograph of the [[Prime Minister of Canada]], [[Justin Trudeau]], wearing [[racial brownface|brownface]] makeup in the spring of 2001.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://time.com/5680759/justin-trudeau-brownface-photo/|title=Justin Trudeau Wore Brownface at 2001 'Arabian Nights' Party While He Taught at a Private School|first= Anna|last=Purna Kambhampaty|author2=Madeleine Carlisle|author3=Melissa Chan|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|language=en|date=September 18, 2019|access-date=September 19, 2019}}</ref> The photograph, which had not been previously reported, was taken at an "[[One Thousand and One Nights|Arabian Nights]]"-themed gala. The photograph showed Trudeau, wearing a turban and robes with his face, neck and hands completely darkened. The photograph appeared in the 2000–2001 yearbook of the [[West Point Grey Academy]], where Trudeau was a teacher. A copy of the yearbook was obtained by ''Time'' earlier in the month from Vancouver businessman Michael Adamson, who was part of the West Point Grey Academy community. Adamson said that he first saw the photograph in July and felt it should be made public. On September 19, 2019, [[Global News]] obtained and published a video from the early 1990s showing Trudeau in blackface.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/5922861/justin-trudeau-brownface-video/ |title=EXCLUSIVE: Video shows Trudeau in blackface in 3rd instance of racist makeup |last1=Stephenson |first1=Mercedes |last2=Armstrong |first2=James |website=[[Global News]] |language=en |date=September 19, 2019 |access-date=September 19, 2019}}</ref> The video showed Trudeau covered in dark makeup and raising his hands in the air while laughing, sticking his tongue out and making faces. The video showed his arms and legs covered in makeup as well as a banana in his pants, eliciting strong negative reactions.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://torontosun.com/news/national/warmington-conservative-mp-leslyn-lewis-wont-be-called-racist-by-blackface-pm |last=Warmington |first=Joe |date=2023-02-24 |access-date=2023-11-09 |title=WARMINGTON: Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis won't be called racist by blackface PM}}</ref> Trudeau admitted that he could not recall how many times he wore blackface after additional footage surfaced.<ref>{{cite news |last=Cecco |first=Leyland |title=Trudeau says he can't recall how many times he wore blackface makeup |website=The Guardian |date=2019-09-20 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/19/justin-trudeau-wearing-blackface-details-emerge-third-incident |access-date=2023-11-10}}</ref>

=== China ===
In May 2016, a global controversy broke regarding a television commercial for Qiaobi clothes washing fluid. The commercial showed a pouch of cleaning liquid being forced into a black man's mouth before he is pushed into a washing machine. He emerges later as an Asian man.<ref>{{cite web |title=Black man is washed whiter in China's racist detergent advert |date=2016-05-28 |website=[[The Guardian]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230521065258/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/28/china-racist-detergent-advert-outrage |archive-date=2023-05-21 |url-status=live |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/28/china-racist-detergent-advert-outrage}}</ref>

On February 15, 2018, a comedy sketch titled "Same Joy, Same Happiness" intending to celebrate [[Africa–China relations|Chinese-African ties]] on the [[CCTV New Year's Gala]], which draws an audience of up to 800&nbsp;million, showed a Chinese actress in blackface makeup with a giant fake bottom playing an African mother, while a performer only exposing black arms playing a monkey accompanied her. At the end of the skit, the actress shouted, "I love Chinese people! I love China!" After being broadcast, the scene was widely criticized as being "disgusting", "awkward" and "completely racist" on Twitter and [[Sina Weibo]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Zhao|first1=Christina|title='Racist' Blackface Chinese New Year TV Sketch Sparks Worldwide Outrage|url=http://www.newsweek.com/racist-blackface-chinese-new-year-tv-gala-sketch-sparks-worldwide-outrage-808864|access-date=February 16, 2018|agency=Newsweek|date=February 16, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Chutel|first1=Lynsey|title=China's state TV ran a racist skit with blackface as Africans for its Lunar New Year show|url=https://qz.com/1209148/black-panthers-africa-afrofuturism-and-wakanda-are-stunning-reimagining-of-a-cultural-aesthetic/|access-date=February 16, 2018|agency=Quartz|date=February 16, 2018}}</ref> According to the street interviews by the [[Associated Press]] in Beijing on February 16, some Chinese people believed this kind of criticism was overblown.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kang|first1=Dake|title=Blackface in Chinese Lunar New Year sketch draws criticism|url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/blackface-chinese-lunar-sketch-draws-criticism-111110411.html|access-date=February 16, 2018|agency=Associated Press|date=February 16, 2018|archive-date=September 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180929114640/https://www.yahoo.com/news/blackface-chinese-lunar-sketch-draws-criticism-111110411.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman [[Geng Shuang]], who also watched the skit, said that China had consistently opposed any form of racism, and added, "I want to say that if there are people who want to seize on an incident to exaggerate matters, and sow discord in China's relations with African countries, this is a doomed futile effort" at a daily news briefing on February 22, 2018.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Blanchard|first1=Ben|title=China denies Lunar New Year broadcast with actress in blackface and fake buttocks was racist|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/china-denies-lunar-new-year-show-with-blackface-fake-butt-was-racist-2018-2|access-date=February 22, 2018|agency=Reuters|date=February 22, 2018}}</ref>

In 2021 CCTV's New Year's Gala show once again featured performers in blackface wearing approximations of African clothing. Like in 2018 it received criticism both within China and internationally. The Chinese foreign ministry responded to criticism by saying that it was not an issue and that anyone saying otherwise must have ulterior motives.<ref>{{cite news|last=|first=|date=February 12, 2021|title=China New Year gala show sparks new racism controversy with blackface performance|language=en|work=[[Reuters]]|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lunar-newyear-china-gala-idUSKBN2AC0BK|access-date=February 13, 2021}}</ref>

=== Colombia ===
{{expand section|date=February 2022}}

The television comedy ''[[Sábados Felices]]'' included a blackface character, who after a controversy changed his makeup to look like a camouflaged soldier.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://radioambulante.org/en/translation/translation-im-not-your-joke|title = Translation – I'm not your Joke|date = April 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/transcripts/619359049?t=1645705255241 |title=Twenty-First Century Blackface : Code Switch |publisher=NPR |date=June 13, 2018 |access-date=2022-02-28}}</ref>

=== Ecuador ===
[[File:FIESTA DE LA MAMA NEGRA (26394583569).jpg|thumb|The "Mama Negra" at the festival in [[Latacunga]], [[Ecuador]]]]
In [[Ecuador]], there's a traditional festival held in [[Latacunga]] called "[[Mama Negra|La Mama Negra]]" also known as ''La Santísima Tragedia'' in which a man in blackface makeup portrays a black woman liberated from slavery holding her youngest child.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mama Negra, simbiosis de las culturas y expresiones populares – Ministerio de Turismo|url=https://www.turismo.gob.ec/mama-negra-simbiosis-de-las-culturas-y-expresiones-populares/|access-date=2021-10-19|website=www.turismo.gob.ec}}</ref>

=== Finland ===
In Finland, a version of the [[Star singers|Star boys]]' singing procession originating in the city of [[Oulu]], a musical play known as Tiernapojat, has become established as a cherished Christmas tradition nationwide. The Tiernapojat show is a staple of Christmas festivities in schools, kindergartens, and elsewhere, and it is broadcast every Christmas on radio and television. The Finnish version contains non-biblical elements such as [[Herod the Great|King Herod]] vanquishing the "king of the [[Moors]]", whose face in the play has traditionally been painted black. The character's color of skin is also a theme in the procession's lyrics.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://fulbrighterinfinland.blogspot.com/2006_12_19_archive.html|title=fulbrighterinfinland: 19 December 2006}}</ref>

The last installation of the ''[[Pekka and Pätkä]]'' comedy film series, ''[[Pekka ja Pätkä neekereinä]]'' (Pekka and Pätkä as Negroes), was made in 1960. In the film a computer tells the title characters that a "negro" would be a suitable profession for them. They blacken their faces and pretend to be American or African entertainers performing in a night club, talking self-invented [[gibberish]] that is supposed to be English. The computer meant "negro" as a now archaic term for a journalist, which originates from journalists' hands becoming tinted black with ink when handling prints.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://elonet.finna.fi/Record/kavi.elonet_elokuva_117452|title=Pekka ja Pätkä neekereinä|first=Aarne|last=Tarkas|date=December 31, 1960|website=elonet.finna.fi}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054169/|title=Pekka ja Pätkä neekereinä|date=March 11, 1960|via=IMDb}}</ref> When Finland's national public broadcasting company [[Yle]] aired this film 2016, some people on the social media disapproved of it and insisted that the film should have been censored, or at least the name changed. A representative from Yle said that an old movie should be evaluated in the context of its own time, and that the idea of the movie is to laugh at people being prejudiced. When the film series was aired in 2019, this particular film of the series was left unaired.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.is.fi/viihde/art-2000001260957.html|title=Pekka ja Pätkä neekereinä -elokuva nostatti valtavan someraivon – Yle vastaa rasismikohuun|date=September 14, 2016|website=Ilta-Sanomat}}</ref><ref name="elokuvauutiset.fi">{{cite web|url=https://www.elokuvauutiset.fi/site/uutiset2/8853-yle-jaettaeae-nyt-pekka-ja-paetkae-neekereinae-elokuvan-esittaemaettae|title=Yle jättää nyt Pekka ja Pätkä neekereinä -elokuvan esittämättä|first=Niko|last=Jutila|website=www.elokuvauutiset.fi|date=April 18, 2019 }}</ref>

Before the 1990s the word "neekeri" (negro) was generally considered a neutral, inoffensive word.<ref>Rastas 2007: Rastas, Anna: "Neutraalisti rasistinen? Erään sanan politiikkaa", Rasismi lasten ja nuorten arjessa: Transnationaalit juuret ja monikulttuuristuva Suomi. Tampere: Tampere University Press, 2007. {{ISBN|978-951-44-6946-6}}</ref>

=== Germany ===
Examples of theatrical productions include the many productions of the play ''Unschuld'' ("Innocence") by the German writer [[Dea Loher]]. The play features two black African immigrants, but the use of black-face is not part of the stage directions or instructions.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.jenkenordalm.de/index.php?id=10 |title=Unschuld [Innocence] |language=de |work=Jenke Nordalm|access-date=October 25, 2012}} Webpage of the director of the production at the Theater Freiburg with pictures</ref> The staging of the play at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin in 2012 was subject of protest.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://etberlin.de/program-mainmenu-32/372-colorblind |title=Colorblind? |work=etberlin.de |access-date=October 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021212250/http://www.etberlin.de/program-mainmenu-32/372-colorblind |archive-date=October 21, 2012}}</ref> The activist group "Bühnenwatch" (stage watch) performed a stunt in one of the stagings: 42 activists, posing as spectators, left the audience without a word and later distributed leaflets to the audience. Fundamental of the criticism was that the use of black-face solidifies stereotypes regardless of any good intentions and supports racist structures. The critics were invited to a discussion with the director, actors, theatre manager and other artists of the Deutsches Theater. As a result of the discussion, Deutsches Theater changed the design of actor make-up. Ulrich Khuon, the theatre manager, later admitted to being surprised by the protest and is now in a process of reflection.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arte.tv/de/6593686,CmC=6588478.html |title=Aktuell: Das Deutsche Theater sieht weiß und/oder Schwarz? &#124; Theaterensemble 'Label Noir' &#124; Metropolis, Samstag ab 16.45 Uhr &#124; Kultur entdecken |work=arte.tv |year=2012 |access-date=October 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202195810/http://www.arte.tv/de/6593686%2CCmC%3D6588478.html |archive-date=February 2, 2014}}</ref>

German productions of [[Herb Gardner]]'s ''[[I'm Not Rappaport]]'' almost always cast the role of Midge Carter, the black character, famously portrayed in the U.S. by [[Ossie Davis]], with a white actor in black makeup. The 2012 production of the play at the Berlin Schlosspark-Theater was the subject of protest.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16492222 |title=Germany's Schlosspark Theatre defends 'blackface' actor |work=bbc.co.uk |date=January 10, 2012 |access-date=October 25, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/10/german-play-im-not-a-rapp_n_1197160.html |title=German Play, 'I'm Not Rappaport', Angers Critics With Blackface Actor |work=huffingtonpost.com |access-date=October 25, 2012 |first=Danielle |last=Cadet |date=January 10, 2012}}</ref> The director, Thomas Schendel, in his response to critics, argued that the classical and common plays would not offer enough roles that would justify a repertoire position for a black actor in a German theatre company. The protest grew considerably and was followed by media reports. While advocates of the theatre indicated that in principle it should be possible for any actor to play any character and that the play itself has an anti-racist message, the critics noted that the letter unwittingly disclosed the general, unexpressed policy of German theatres, i.e., that white actors are accounted to be qualified for all roles, even black ones, while black actors are suitable only for black roles.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.vice.com/en/article/blackface-is-the-new-black/ |title=Blackface Is the New Black|first=Stefan |last=Lauer |work=vice.com |access-date=October 25, 2012|date=March 22, 2012}}</ref> Other authors said that this problem in Germany generally exists for citizens with an immigrant background.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nachtkritik.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6740:die-blackfacing-debatte-iii-man-muss-kein-neonazi-sein-um-rassistisch-zu-handeln&catid=101:debatte&Itemid=84 |title=Die Blackfacing-Debatte III&nbsp;– Man muss kein Neonazi sein, um rassistisch zu handeln |first=Lara-Sophie |last=Milagro |date=March 28, 2012 |work=nachtkritik.de |access-date=October 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103072524/http://www.nachtkritik.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6740%3Adie-blackfacing-debatte-iii-man-muss-kein-neonazi-sein-um-rassistisch-zu-handeln&catid=101%3Adebatte&Itemid=84 |archive-date=November 3, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://nachtkritik.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5600:kommentar--migranten-spielen-auf-den-sprechbuehnen-keine-rolle&catid=101:debatte&Itemid=84 |title=Kommentar&nbsp;– Migranten spielen auf den Sprechbühnen keine Rolle |first=Özgür |last=Uludag |work=nachtkritik.de |date=May 2011 |access-date=October 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103080415/http://nachtkritik.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5600%3Akommentar--migranten-spielen-auf-den-sprechbuehnen-keine-rolle&catid=101%3Adebatte&Itemid=84 |archive-date=November 3, 2012}}</ref> The debate also received foreign media attention. The Schlosspark-Theater announced plans to continue the performances, and the German publishing company of ''Rappaport'' stated it will continue to grant permits for such performances.

German dramatists commented on the debate:

{{blockquote|Unfortunately, I do not believe that our society has come to accept a black Faust in the theatre.|Christian Tombeil, theater manager of Schauspiel Essen, 2012<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.derwesten.de/nrz/staedte/essen/kultur/rassismusdebatte-um-schwarze-auf-schauspielbuehnen-id6361236.html |title=Rassismusdebatte um Schwarze auf Schauspielbühnen |first=Nikolaos |last=Georgakis |work=derwesten.de |year=2012<!-- [last update] --> |access-date=September 12, 2012 |archive-date=October 28, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141028023817/http://www.derwesten.de/nrz/staedte/essen/kultur/rassismusdebatte-um-schwarze-auf-schauspielbuehnen-id6361236.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>}}

{{blockquote|We too have a problem to deal with issues of racism. We try to work it out by promoting tolerance, but tolerance is not a solution to racism. Why not? Because it does not matter whether our best friends are immigrants if, at the same time, we cannot cast a Black man for the part of Hamlet because then nobody could truly understand the "real" essence of that part. Issues of racism are primarily issues of representation, especially in the theatre.|René Pollesch, director, 2012<ref>{{cite web |url= http://sz-magazin.sueddeutsche.de/texte/anzeigen/37453/%20SZ-Magazin.de |title=Interview mit René Pollesch über Liebe und Rücksicht.&nbsp;– Aus dem Magazin |first=Tobias |last= Haberl |work=sz-magazin.sueddeutsche.de |year=2012<!-- [last update] --> |access-date=September 12, 2012}}</ref>}}

In 2012, the American dramatist [[Bruce Norris (playwright)|Bruce Norris]] cancelled a German production of his play ''Clybourne Park'' when it was disclosed that a white actress would portray the African-American "Francine". A subsequent production using black German actors was successfully staged.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.staatstheater-mainz.com/index.php?id=1471 |title='Clybourne Park' at Staatstheater Mainz|work=staatstheater-mainz.com |year=2012<!-- [last update] --> |access-date=September 12, 2012}}</ref>

=== Guatemala ===
Guatemalan 2015 elected president, [[Jimmy Morales]], was a comic actor. One of the characters he impersonated in his comic show "Moralejas" was called Black Pitaya which used blackface makeup. Jimmy Morales defended his blackface character saying he is adored by the country's black Garifuna and indigenous Mayan communities.<ref>{{cite news |first=Nina |last=Lakhani |newspaper=The Guardian |date=October 21, 2015 |title=Guatemalans face choice of former blackface comedian or ex-first lady
 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/21/guatemalans-presidential-election-former-blackface-comedian-or-ex-first-lady}}</ref>

=== Iran ===
[[File:HajjiFiruz.JPG|thumb|150px|[[Hajji Firuz]] in [[Tehran]], Iran]]In [[Persian theatre|Iranian traditional theater]], a performance art known as ''[[siah-bazi]]'' features a character with a blackened face who engages in humorous and satirical acts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Behnegarsoft.com |title=Iran Book News Agency (IBNA) - "Siah-bazi a forbidden play" released |url=http://www.ibna.ir/vdcawon6u49nmy1.tgk4.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20140714164839/http://www.ibna.ir/vdcawon6u49nmy1.tgk4.html |archive-date=2014-07-14 |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=www.ibna.ir}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Armbrust|first=Walter|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0TcLEgR9GkMC|title=Mass Mediations: New Approaches to Popular Culture in the Middle East and Beyond|publisher=University of California Press|year=2000|isbn=0520219260|location=California|pages=63–64}}</ref> This character often serves as a comedic foil, challenging authority figures through wit and jest.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2013-04-19 |title=Opinion: The "Cursed Three" and the "Supreme Leader" - ASHARQ AL-AWSAT |url=http://www.aawsat.net/2013/04/article55299199 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20150620163357/http://www.aawsat.net/2013/04/article55299199 |archive-date=2015-06-20 |access-date=2025-05-17 |work=ASHARQ AL-AWSAT |language=en-US}}</ref> The use of blackface in ''siah-bazi'' has been a longstanding element of the performance, though it has faced criticism in contemporary times.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Collective |first=Ajam Media |date=2016-12-07 |title=A Review of Tarabnameh, or, Why Are Iranian-Americans Laughing at Blackface in 2016? |url=https://ajammc.com/2016/12/07/why-are-iranian-americans-laughing-at-blackface-in-2016/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=Ajam Media Collective |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Fathali Beigi|first=Davood|date=January 16, 2013|title="Siah-Bazi A Forbidden Play" Released|url=http://www.ibna.ir/vdcawon6u49nmy1.tgk4.html|access-date=April 12, 2021|website=Iranian Book News Agency (IBNA)|archive-date=July 14, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714164839/http://www.ibna.ir/vdcawon6u49nmy1.tgk4.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Additionally, during the [[Nowruz]] celebrations in Iran, an [[Iranian folklore]] character named [[Hajji Firuz]] is traditionally portrayed by a performer in blackface,<ref name="Noruz">{{cite web|url=http://traditionscustoms.com/festivals/noruz|title=Noruz {{!}} TraditionsCustoms.com|website=traditionscustoms.com|language=en|access-date=September 2, 2018|archive-date=October 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201015102055/http://traditionscustoms.com/festivals/noruz|url-status=dead}}</ref> singing and dancing to bring joy for the new year.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Baghoolizadeh |first=Beeta |date=2021 |title=The Myths of Haji Firuz: The Racist Contours of the Iranian Minstrel |journal=Lateral |language=en-US |volume=10 |issue=1 |doi=10.25158/L10.1.12 |issn=2469-4053|doi-access=free }}</ref>

=== Japan ===
{{See also|Japanese hip hop}}

In Japan, in the early 1960s, a toy called Dakkochan became hugely popular. ''Dakkochan'' was a black child with large red lips and a grass skirt. There were boy and girl dolls, with the girls being distinguished by a bow. The black skin of the dolls was said to have been significant and in-line with the rising popularity of jazz. Novelist Tensei Kawano went as far as to state, "We of the younger generation are outcasts from politics and society. In a way we are like Negroes, who have a long record of oppression and misunderstanding, and we feel akin to them."<ref>{{cite magazine| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,939182,00.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091015071338/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,939182,00.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=October 15, 2009 | magazine=Time | title=JAPAN: Dakkochan Delirium | date=August 29, 1960 | access-date=April 26, 2010}}</ref>

Some Japanese manga and [[anime]] have featured characters accused of being inspired by "darky" iconography, which includes [[Mr. Popo]] from the ''[[Dragon Ball]]'' series and the design of the [[Pokémon]] character [[Jynx]]. Both Mr. Popo and Jynx have been censored on American broadcasting, with Mr. Popo being turned bright blue and given orange-yellow lips instead.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/what-black-anime-fans-can-teach-us-about-race-in-america-805/|title=What Black Anime Fans Can Teach Us About Race in America|date=August 5, 2015|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref> 

In [[Japanese hip hop]], a subculture of hip-hoppers subscribe to the ''burapan'' style, and are referred to as blackfacers.<ref>[http://etext.virginia.edu/railton/huckfinn/minstrl.html "Black-Face Minstrelsy"]. ''virginia.edu''. Retrieved on November 26, 2015.</ref> The appearance of these blackfacers is evidence of the popularity of the hip-hop movement in Japan despite what is described as racist tendencies in the culture.<ref name="autogenerated12">{{cite journal |last1=Wood |first1=Joe |title=The Yellow Negro |journal=Transition |date=1997 |issue=73 |pages=40–67 |doi=10.2307/2935443 |jstor=2935443 }}</ref> It was reported in 2006 that some Japanese hip-hop fans found it embarrassing and ridiculous for fans to change their appearance with blackface in attempt to embrace the culture. In some instances it could be seen as a racist act, but for many of the young Japanese fans it was seen as an appropriate way of immersing in the hip hop culture.<ref>{{cite web|last=Ashcraft|first=Brian|date=June 28, 2006|title=LocoRoco Racist?|url=https://kotaku.com/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003101647/http://kotaku.com/gaming/top/locoroco-racist-183885.php|archive-date=October 3, 2009|website=Kotaku}}</ref> The use of blackface is seen by some as a way to rebel against the culture of surface images in Japan.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Neate|first=Patrick|title=Where You're At: Notes From the Frontline of a Hip Hop Planet.|publisher=[[Riverhead Trade]]|year=2003|isbn=9781594480126}}{{page needed|date=October 2023}}</ref>

Blackface has also been a contentious issue in the music scene outside of hip hop.<ref>{{cite news|last=McNeil|first=Baye|date=February 18, 2015|title=Time to shut down this modern-day minstrel show|work=[[The Japan Times]]|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/community/2015/02/18/our-lives/time-shut-modern-day-minstrel-show/|access-date=November 26, 2015}}</ref> One Japanese R&B group, the Gosperats, has been known to wear blackface makeup during performances.<ref>{{cite news|last=Hamamoto|first=Ben|date=June 2006|title=Is blackface in Japan racist?|url=http://www.mixedmediawatch.com/2006/06/05/is-blackface-in-japan-racist/|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060907082013/http://www.mixedmediawatch.com/2006/06/05/is-blackface-in-japan-racist/|archive-date=September 7, 2006}}</ref> In March 2015 a music television program produced by the [[Fuji TV]] network was scheduled to show a segment featuring two Japanese groups performing together in blackface, [[Rats & Star]] and [[Momoiro Clover Z]]. A picture was published online by one of the Rats & Star members after the segment was recorded, which led to a campaign against broadcasting of the segment. The program that aired on March 7 was edited by the network to remove the segment "after considering the overall circumstances",<ref>Hongo, Junn, [https://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2015/03/10/japan-tv-station-pulls-blackface-performance-from-program/ "Japan TV Station Pulls Blackface Performance From Program"]. ''WSJ''. Retrieved November 26, 2015.</ref> but the announcement did not acknowledge the campaign against the segment.<ref>[http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/03/09/national/fuji-tv-removes-blackface-segment-after-outcry/ "Fuji TV removes blackface segment after outcry"]. ''The Japan Times''. Retrieved on November 26, 2015.</ref>

=== Mexico ===
In modern-day Mexico there are examples of images (usually caricatures) in blackface (e.g., [[Memín Pinguín]]). Though there is backlash from international communities, Mexican society has not protested to have these images changed to racially sensitive images. On the contrary, in the controversial Memín Pinguín cartoon there has been support publicly and politically, such as from the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs [[Luis Ernesto Derbez]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Hace EU el 'ridículo' al criticar a Memín Pinguín: Derbez |trans-title=It was ridiculous for the U.S. to criticize Memín Pinguín: Derbez |url=http://www.esmas.com/noticierostelevisa/mexico/457430.html |website=Noticieros Televisa |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003150100/http://www.esmas.com/noticierostelevisa/mexico/457430.html |archive-date=October 3, 2012}}</ref> Currently in Mexico only 3–4% of the population are [[Afro-Mexicans]] (this percentage includes [[Asian Mexicans]]).

=== Panama ===
Portobelo's Carnival and Congo dance in Panama include a use of blackface as a form of celebration of [[History of Africa|African history]], an emancipatory symbol. Black men paint their faces with charcoal which represents three things. Firstly, the blackface is used as a tool to remember their African ancestors. Secondly, the black face is representative of the disguise or concealment on the run which slaves would have used to evade the Spanish colonizers. Lastly, the practice of blackface is used as a way to signify the code or "secret language" which slaves would have used during the time of the Spanish occupation. During the celebration, for example, good morning will mean good night, and wearing black, or in this case wearing blackface, which normally denotes a time of mourning, is instead used as a way to represent a time of celebration.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Elizabeth|first=Rhodes|date=January 1, 2004|title=Black Indians, Zulus and Congos; Transformation and Transference of Community Traditions in New Orleans and Panama|journal=Textual Resources|url=http://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/folklorico_textual/2/|language=en}}</ref>

=== Philippines ===

In 2011, a [[Philippine television drama|television drama in the Philippines]] titled ''[[Nita Negrita]]'' was widely criticized in the media and by academics.<ref name="Asia embraces blackface-style ads">{{cite web|url=https://theworld.org/stories/2014-07-01/asia-embraces-blackface-style-ads-get-ready-cringe|first=Patrick|last=Winn|title=Asia embraces blackface-style ads. Get ready to cringe|website=The World|date=July 1, 2014|access-date=July 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/weekend/2016/09/10/y-speak-racism-philippines-does-it-exist-496944|title=Y-speak: Racism in the Philippines: Does it exist?|website=SunStar|date=September 10, 2016|access-date=April 12, 2018}}</ref> 

=== Portugal and Brazil ===
Use of black performance in impersonations was quite frequently used in the impressions show ''A Tua Cara não Me É Estranha'', with blackface impressions of [[Michael Jackson]],<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGwtcMcdSaw A Tua Cara Não Me é estranha: Paulo Vintém interpreta Michael Jackson], Youtube</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yjJnoQZB6Q Maria João Abreu (Michael Jackson)&nbsp;– A Tua Cara Não Me É Estranha (TVI)], YouTube</ref> [[Siedah Garrett]],<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ji9RQoeIAyw Daniela e Edmundo interpretam Michael Jackson e Siedah Garrett-A Tua cara não me é Estranha (TVI )], YouTube</ref> [[Tracy Chapman]],<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNqpmyIikDU Merche Romero interpreta Tracy Chapman], YouTube</ref> [[Louis Armstrong|Louie Armstrong]],<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIn6K-5tRLk Mico da Câmara Pereira interpreta «What a Wonderful World» de Louis Armstrong], YouTube</ref> [[Nat King Cole]],<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePvfQqvubls Nicolau Breyner interpreta_Nat King Cole_ A Tua Cara Não me é Estranha], YouTube</ref> among others. In 2018, Eduardo Madeira dressed up as Serena Williams,<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynqoru4WAC4 Serena Williams no 5 {{!}} 5 Para a Meia-Noite {{!}} RTP], YouTube, September 27, 2018</ref> adding an African accent the tennis player does not have in real life.

In Brazil, there has been at least some history of non-comedic use of blackface, using white actors for black characters like [[Uncle Tom's Cabin|Uncle Tom]] (although the practice of "racelift", or making black/mulatto characters into [[mestizo|mestiços]]/swarthy whites/[[caboclo]]s, is more frequent than blackface).<ref>[https://virtualia.blogs.sapo.pt/29596.html Os Negros Nas Novelas], blog ''Virtualia'', May 23, 2009.</ref><ref>[http://lostinjapan.portalnippon.com/2012/06/cor-de-gabriela-lost-in-japan.html A Cor de Gabriela] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130126103416/http://lostinjapan.portalnippon.com/2012/06/cor-de-gabriela-lost-in-japan.html |date=January 26, 2013 }}, ''Lost in Japan'', June 18, 2012.</ref><ref>[http://f5.folha.uol.com.br/televisao/988689-caixa-refaz-propaganda-e-mostra-machado-de-assis-mulato.shtml Caixa refaz propaganda e mostra Machado de Assis mulato] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130129172831/http://f5.folha.uol.com.br/televisao/988689-caixa-refaz-propaganda-e-mostra-machado-de-assis-mulato.shtml |date=January 29, 2013 }}, F5, ''[[Folha de S.Paulo]]'', October 10, 2011.</ref> Use of blackface in humor has been used more rarely than in Portugal, although it also continues into this century (but it creates major uproar among the sizeable and more politically active [[Afro-Brazilians|Afro-Brazilian]] community).<ref>[http://www.pragmatismopolitico.com.br/2012/08/racismo-explicito-no-zorra-total-relembra-humor-segregacionista-dos-eua.html "Racismo explícito no Zorra Total relembra humor segregacionista dos EUA"], ''Pragmatismo Político'', August 15, 2012.</ref>

=== Russia ===
Soviet Russian writers and illustrators sometimes inadvertently perpetuated stereotypes about other nations that are now viewed as harmful. For example, a Soviet children's book or cartoon might innocently contain a representation of black people that would be perceived as unquestionably offensive by the modern-day western standards, such as bright red lips and other exaggerated features, similar to the portrayal of blacks in American minstrel shows. Soviet artists "did not quite understand the harm of representing black people in this way, and continued to employ this method, even in creative productions aimed specifically at critiquing American race relations".<ref name="redrussia">{{cite news|first=Jennifer|last=Wilson|date=August 31, 2017|url=https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-08-31/how-red-russia-broke-new-ground-portrayal-black-americans|title=How red Russia broke new ground in the portrayal of black Americans|newspaper=The World from PRX |publisher=PRI}}</ref>

In 1910, the ballet ''[[Scheherazade (Rimsky-Korsakov)|Sheherazade]]'', choreographed by [[Michel Fokine|Michael Fokine]], premiered in Russia. The story behind the ballet was inspired by a tone poem written by [[Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov|Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov]]. In the ballet the leading female character, Zobeide, is seduced by a Golden Slave. The dancer who portrayed the Golden Slave, the first being [[Vaslav Nijinsky]], would have his face and body painted brown for the performance. This was done to show the audience the slave was of a darker complexion. Later in 1912, Fokine choreographed the ballet ''[[Petrushka (ballet)|Petrushka]]'', which centers around three puppets that come to life, Petrushka, the Ballerina, and the Moor. When the ballet premiered, the part of the Moor, first danced by Alexander Orlov, was performed in full blackface. The Moor puppet is first seen onstage playing with a [[coconut]], which he attempts to open with his [[scimitar]]. His movements are apelike. The Moor seduces the Ballerina and later savagely cuts off the head of the puppet Petrushka. When ''Petrushka'' is performed today, the part of the Moor is still done in full blackface, or occasionally blueface. The blackface has not been publicly criticized in the ballet community. Black and brownface appear in other ballets today, such as ''[[La Bayadère]]'' and ''[[Othello]]'', in the United States and Europe.<ref>Au, Susan. ''Ballet and Modern Dance'', 2nd edn. London: Thames & Hudson, 2002. Print.{{page needed|date=October 2023}}</ref>

The early Soviet political cartoon ''[[Black and White (1932 film)|Black and White]]'', created in 1932, managed to avoid the blackface style, confronting "precisely that paternalistic model of the ever-passive black subject awaiting enlightenment from the Comintern".<ref name="blackandwhite">{{cite web|first=Christina|last=Kiaer|date=October 31, 2017|url=https://www.aaihs.org/anti-racism-in-early-soviet-visual-culture/|title=Anti-racism in Early Soviet Visual Culture|publisher=Black Perspectives}}</ref> The cartoon integrated "an avant-garde-influenced visual aesthetic with images derived from the many newspaper illustrations, cartoons, and posters of American racism that appeared in Soviet Russia at this time".<ref name="blackandwhite" />

Soviet theater and movie directors rarely had access to black actors, and so resorted to using black makeup when dictated by the character's descent. Soviet actors portrayed black people mostly by darkening the skin and occasionally adjusting the hair style, without accentuating or exaggerating their facial features. In particular, [[Vladimir Vysotsky]] performed the role of [[Abram Petrovich Gannibal]], an 18th-century Russian general of African origin, in the 1976 Soviet film ''[[How Czar Peter the Great Married Off His Moor]]'', while [[Larisa Dolina]] performed the role of Cuban singer Clementine Fernandez in the 1983 film ''[[We Are from Jazz]]''. The [[Othello (1956 film)|1956 Soviet film adaptation]] of [[Othello]] received the Best Director Award at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival.

On November 30, 2020, in a segment of the Russian TV show "International Sawmill", Russian television presenter [[Tigran Keosayan]] interviewed an actress in blackface posing as former United States President [[Barack Obama]]. In the segment, Keosayan, referring to Obama's book ''[[A Promised Land]]'', asks the actress: "Do you consider this book your achievement?", to which the actress in blackface replies: "Of course." Keosayan then asks: "Because none of your relatives have written books?", after which the actress answers: "Because none of my relatives that came before me could write." Keosayan then states "you should have become a rap musician, not the president". The segment was widely deemed racist.<ref>{{cite web|date=November 30, 2020|title=Obama Blackface Skit on Kremlin-Funded TV Sparks Outrage|url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2020/11/30/obama-blackface-skit-on-kremlin-funded-tv-sparks-outrage-a72176|website=The Moscow Times|access-date=August 6, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last1=Haroun|first1=Azmi|date=December 1, 2020|title=Russian state TV broadcaster features racist segment of an actress in blackface doing a portrayal of Obama|newspaper=[[Business Insider]]|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/kremlin-tv-station-broadcasts-actress-in-blackface-impersonating-obama-2020-11?international=true&r=US&IR=T|url-access=|access-date=August 6, 2022}}</ref>

===Spain===
[[File:Cabalgata de Baltasar.JPG|thumb|A man wearing blackface to depict Balthazar during a parade in Cádiz.]]
On the eve of the [[Epiphany (holiday)|Feast of the Epiphany]], it is tradition in Spanish cities to hold a colorful parade where three men are disguised as the [[Biblical Magi]] and throw candy and presents to the children watching the parade. One of these three men is usually in blackface to depict [[Balthazar (magus)|Balthazar]], as such magus is often depicted as a black African. Such a display in Madrid in 2014 led to widespread discussions and to petitions calling for an end to the blackface practice, and to have Balthazar portrayed by a person of color.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nu.nl/entertainment/6296887/madrid-laat-per-ongeluk-videos-voor-driekoningen-maken-met-blackface.html?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F |publisher=NU.nl |date=5 January 2024 |title=Madrid laat per ongeluk video's voor Driekoningen maken met blackface |language=nl |accessdate=8 October 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9OwjEAAAQBAJ |title=Recht in beweging |year=2021 |language=nl |publisher=Gompel & Svacina |location=Antwerpen |chapter=Populaire cultuur onder de loep: Europese mensenrechten als instrument voor culturele wijzigingen of voor cultuurbehoud? |pages=89–92|isbn=978-94-6371-297-2 }}</ref>

=== South Africa ===
Inspired by blackface minstrels who visited [[Cape Town]], South Africa, in 1848, former [[Javanese people|Javanese]] and [[Malays (ethnic group)|Malay]] [[coolie]]s took up the minstrel tradition, holding emancipation celebrations which consisted of music, dancing and parades. Such celebrations eventually became consolidated into an annual, year-end event called the "Coon Carnival" but now known as the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival or the [[Kaapse Klopse]].

Today, carnival minstrels are mostly [[Coloureds|Coloured]] ("mixed race"), [[Afrikaans]]-speaking revelers. Often in a pared-down style of blackface which exaggerates only the lips. They parade down the streets of the city in colorful costumes, in a celebration of [[Creole peoples|Creole]] culture. Participants also pay homage to the carnival's African-American roots, playing [[Spirituals|Negro spirituals]] and [[jazz]] featuring traditional [[Dixieland]] jazz instruments, including [[Brass instrument|horns]], [[banjo]]s, and tambourines.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.africapetours.com/Coon+Carnival.htm |title=Coon Carnival Cape Town |date=October 27, 2005 |access-date=July 11, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051027061922/http://www.africapetours.com/Coon%20Carnival.htm |archive-date=October 27, 2005}}</ref>

The South African actor and filmmaker [[Leon Schuster]] is well known for employing the blackface technique in his filming to little or no controversy. But in 2013, the [[Advertising Standards Authority (South Africa)|Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa]] halted the airing of an ad wherein Schuster portrayed a stereotypically dishonest African politician in blackface.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/copyranter/offensive-blackface-south-african-commercial-banned|title="Offensive" Blackface South African Commercial Banned|work=BuzzFeed|date=September 5, 2013 }}</ref> The action was in response to the following submitted complaint:

{{blockquote|... the commercial is offensive as it portrays a stereotype that black politicians are liars. This technique is known as blackface, and is an inherently racist form of acting. The black character is depicted with derogatory intention, speaks with a thick accent, and recalls a stereotypical black dictator. To achieve the desired result of showing a corrupt official, there was no need for the man to be made out to be black.}}

[[Vodacom]] South Africa has also been accused of using non-African actors in blackface in its advertising as opposed to simply using African actors. Some have denounced blackface as an artefact of apartheid, accusing broadcasters of lampooning Black people. Others continue to see it as "harmless fun".<ref name="Brundage2011">{{cite book|author=William Fitzhugh Brundage|title=Beyond Blackface: African Americans and the Creation of American Popular Culture, 1890–1930 |url=https://archive.org/details/beyondblackfacea00brun |url-access=registration|year=2011 |publisher=University of North Carolina Press|isbn=978-0-8078-3462-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/beyondblackfacea00brun/page/53 53]}}</ref> In 2014, photos of two white [[University of Pretoria]] female students donning blackface makeup in an attempt at caricaturing Black [[domestic workers]] surfaced on Facebook. The students were said to face disciplinary action for throwing the institution's name into disrepute.<ref>ewn.co.za. 2014. Tuks-blackface-students-face-disciplinary-action. [ONLINE] Available at: http://ewn.co.za/2014/08/06/Tuks-blackface-students-face-disciplinary-action. [Retrieved August 6, 2014].</ref>

=== South Korea ===
{{See also|Racism in South Korea}}
Comedians in many Asian countries continue to occasionally use minstrel-inspired blackface, with considerable frequency in South Korea.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ebony.com/entertainment-culture/blackface-backlash-korean-show|title=Backlash over Blackface use in South Korean Show|date=April 20, 2017|work=ebony.com|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/ikrd/people-are-not-happy-with-this-korean-show-for-using|title=A Korean TV Station Has Now Apologised For Using Blackface|website=[[BuzzFeed]]|date=April 21, 2017 |access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/culture/2014/02/201_150883.html|title=Will they ever get it?|date=February 3, 2014|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://jezebel.com/5889705/omg-wtf-is-up-with-k-pop--blackface|title=WTF Is Up With K-Pop and Blackface?!|first=Tracie Egan|last=Morrissey|date=March 2012 |access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.koreadispatch.com/2017/04/23/sbs-comedy-show-addresses-blackface-controversy/|title=SBS Comedy Show Addresses Blackface Controversy|date=April 23, 2017|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://seoulbeats.com/2017/07/blackface-is-still-racist-and-wrong-yes-even-in-korea/|title=Blackface Is Still Racist and Wrong. Yes, Even In Korea|date=July 13, 2017|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://nextshark.com/controversial-kbs-korean-show-caught-trying-to-do-blackface-again/|title=Controversial Korean Show Caught Trying to Do 'Blackface' Again|website=nextshark.com|access-date=October 24, 2018|date=August 23, 2017}}</ref> "Acting black" has been a common phenomenon in South Korean media for more than 30 years: in the 80s, comedians used to perform with darkened faces without attracting criticism.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Han |first1=Gil-Soo |title=K-Pop nationalism: Celebrities and acting blackface in the Korean media |journal=Continuum |date=January 2, 2015 |volume=29 |issue=1 |pages=2–16 |doi=10.1080/10304312.2014.968522|s2cid=145167118 }}</ref> Although criticism has increased, use of blackface in Korean media was still occurring in 2018: a performer used blackface in a TV show, a play called "The Blacks" used blackface.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Carpenter |first1=Nicole |title=Blizzard accused of blackface on South Korean Overwatch stream |url=https://dotesports.com/overwatch/news/blizzard-accused-of-blackface-on-south-korean-overwatch-stream |website=Dot Esports |date=November 8, 2018}}</ref> In 2020, ''[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]'' reported that backlash to pictures posted by students in which they posed in blackface for Halloween was indicative of growing consciousness toward racism in the country.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kang |first1=Tae-jun |title=What a Blackface Photo Says About South Korea's Racism Problem |url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/08/what-a-blackface-photo-says-about-south-koreas-racism-problem/ |work=thediplomat.com}}</ref>

=== Taiwan ===
Taiwanese YouTube comedy group The Wackyboys came under fire after some of its members blackfaced for a [[Dancing Pallbearers]] parody video. The group later apologised and deleted the video.<ref>{{cite news |title=Taiwan's Wackyboys perform coffin dance in blackface |url=https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3943853 |access-date=June 29, 2020 |work=Taiwan News |date=June 2, 2020}}</ref>

=== Thailand ===
In [[Thailand]], actors darken their faces to portray [[Semang|the Negrito of Thailand]] in a popular play by King [[Chulalongkorn]] (1868–1910), ''[[Ngo Pa]]'', which has been turned into a musical and a movie.<ref>{{cite book
|last= Keyes
|first= Charles F.
|title= The golden peninsula : culture and adaptation in mainland Southeast Asia. Includes bibliographical references and index.
|year= 1995
|publisher= (SHAPS library of Asian studies) University of Hawai'i Press
|location= Honolulu
|page = 34
|isbn= 978-0-8248-1696-4}}</ref>

Blackface have been used in commercials in Thailand, as with some other parts of Asia.<ref name="Asia embraces blackface-style ads" /> In 2012, [[The Bangkok Post]] reported on a line of cleaning products in Thailand named "Black Man".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/print/295230/|title=Brand names still stuck in the dark age
|newspaper=Bangkok Post|first=Andrew|last=Biggs|date=May 27, 2012|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref>

=== Turkey ===
In Turkey, the actor [[Tevfik Gelenbe]] used blackface to portray Arab "[[Mammy stereotype|mammy]]" characters throughout his career, from the 1960s through to the 1980s.<ref>{{cite news |title=Is there really no anti-Black racism in Turkey? |url=https://bianet.org/yazi/is-there-really-no-anti-black-racism-in-turkey-226799 |access-date=20 November 2023 |work=bianet.org |language=en}}</ref>

=== United Kingdom ===
==== Poachers and rioters ====
From 1723 to 1823, it was a criminal offence to blacken one's face in some circumstances, with a punishment of death. The [[Black Act 1723|Black Act]] was passed at a time of economic downturn that led to heightened social tensions, and in response to a series of raids by two groups of [[poaching|poachers]] who blackened their faces to prevent identification.<ref name="Rogers">{{cite journal |last1=Rogers |first1=Pat |title=The Waltham Blacks and the Black Act |journal=The Historical Journal |date=September 1974 |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=465–486 |doi=10.1017/S0018246X00005252 |s2cid=159741413 }}</ref> Blackening one's face with soot, lampblack, boot polish or coal dust was a traditional form of disguise, or masking, especially at night when poaching.

The Welsh [[Rebecca Riots|Rebecca Rioters]] (1839–1843) used to blacken their faces or wear masks to prevent themselves being identified whilst breaking down [[Turnpike trust|turnpike gates]], sometimes [[History of cross-dressing|disguised as women]].

==== Folk culture ====
{{main|Blackface and Morris dancing}}

South Western English traditional [[folk play]]s sometimes have a Turk Slaver character, probably from the [[Barbary pirates|Barbary Coast Slave raids]] on Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset in the early 17th Century by "[[Salé Rovers|Sallee Rovers]]" (where the English were the slaves captured and taken by force to North Africa). This character is usually played using a black face (or brownface).

Throughout the country, the Turkish ([[Saracen]]) Knight character (probably harkening back to the [[crusades]] during the [[Middle Ages|Medieval era]]) in traditional English Mummers' plays was played in blackface (or brownface), though less often in the modern era.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1259473|title=The Turkish Knight in English Traditional Drama|author=Newall, Venetia|year=1981|journal=Folklore|volume=92|issue=2|pages=196–202|doi=10.1080/0015587X.1981.9716206|jstor=1259473}} See, for example, p. 197: "[H]e is referred to in a variety of ways. For example: Turkey Champion, Turkish Champion, Grand Turk, Black King of Morocco, Black Morocco King, Saracen Knight, Turkey Snipe (a common corruption of Turkish Knight), Morocco Dog, Prince of Paradine or Black Prince of Paradine.... The play from Antrobus in Cheshire represents the Black Prince with blackened face."</ref>

Various forms of [[folk dance]] in England, including [[Morris dance|Morris dancing]], have traditionally used blackface; its continuing use by some troupes is controversial.<ref name="Buckland">{{cite journal | last1 = Buckland | first1 = Theresa Jill | year = 1990 | title = Black Faces, Garlands, and Coconuts: Exotic Dances on Street and Stage | journal = Dance Research Journal | volume = 22 | issue = 2 | pages = 1–12 | jstor = 1477779 | doi = 10.2307/1477779 | s2cid = 193009637 }}</ref><ref name=RFP>{{citation|url=http://www.rossendalefreepress.co.uk/incoming/straw-defends-nutters-twitter-picture-7026569 |title=Straw defends 'Nutters in Twitter picture row |newspaper=Rossendale Free Press |date=April 24, 2014 |author=Beth Abbit |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140427163545/http://www.rossendalefreepress.co.uk/incoming/straw-defends-nutters-twitter-picture-7026569 |archive-date=April 27, 2014}}</ref><ref name=T14>{{citation |title=Meeting the dance troop who say 'blacking-up' is a badge of pride |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/10789789/Meeting-the-dance-troop-who-say-blacking-up-is-a-badge-of-pride.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/10789789/Meeting-the-dance-troop-who-say-blacking-up-is-a-badge-of-pride.html |archive-date=January 11, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |author=William Langley |newspaper=Sunday Telegraph |date=April 27, 2014}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Some interpretations trace the original invention of blackface back to [[Blackface and Morris dancing|specific morris traditions]].

[[Molly dance]]rs and [[Guise dancing|Cornish Guise Dancers]], traditionally associated with midwinter festivals, often use blacked faces as a disguise. The Molly dancers wished to avoid being identified by the landlords and petty nobles, who were also usually the local magistrates, when they played tricks on those who failed to be generous enough in their gifts to the dancers. The Guise dancers (disguised dancers) also wished to avoid any punishment for their mocking songs embarrassing the local gentry.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Guise Dancing {{!}} |url=https://www.cornwallforever.co.uk/year/guise-dancing |access-date=2022-08-27 |website=Cornwall For Ever! |language=en}}</ref>

Some traditional mummers groups perform the English folk play "St George and the Turkish Knight" with the entire cast, including Father Christmas, and all the white, English characters in mummers' blackface.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.winterbourndownbordermorris.co.uk/videoboxday.html|title=Video boxing day|website=www.winterbourndownbordermorris.co.uk|access-date=October 15, 2022|archive-date=March 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319062703/http://www.winterbourndownbordermorris.co.uk/videoboxday.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In [[Bacup]], Lancashire, the [[Britannia Coconut Dancers]] wear black faces. Some{{Who|date=December 2013}} believe the origin of this dance can be traced back to the influx of Cornish miners to northern England, and the black face relates to the dirty blackened faces associated with mining.

In [[Cornwall]], several [[Mummer's Day]] celebrations are still held; these used to be sometimes known as "Darkie Day" (a corruption of the original "Darking Day", referring to the darkening or painting of the faces) and involved local residents dancing through the streets in blackface to musical accompaniment. As late as 2014, at least one festival ([[Padstow]]) featured such songs as 'Old Uncle Ned', which includes the lyrics "He's gone where the good niggers go".<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Radio 4 – The Untold – Harmless Tradition? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/2rLzDFR653mHgzFzXKpfpDB/harmless-tradition |access-date=2022-05-18 |website=BBC |language=en-GB}}</ref>

The traditional [[Chimney-sweeps (folklore)|wedding day chimney sweep]], that is considered to be good luck, sometimes has a partially blacked up face to suggest smears of soot. This depends on the performer but it was, and still is, unusual to have a full blackening. Though the complete covered "greyface" is known.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf0GWgPIPeU| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211030/Jf0GWgPIPeU| archive-date=2021-10-30|title=Charlie Brush- wedding chimney sweep – YouTube|website=www.youtube.com| date=September 27, 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

These two traditions, of chimney sweep and folk dancing, coincide in the sometimes lost traditions of (chimney) sweepers festivals. [[Medway Council]] supports the Sweeps' Festival, revived in 1981, now claimed to be "the largest festival of Morris dance in the world". It takes place in [[Rochester, Kent|Rochester]] around May Day and features a [[Jack in the Green]] character. Originally the chimney sweeps were little boys, and they used the day to beg for money, until this [[Child labour#Britain|child labour was outlawed]].<ref>{{cite web|title=History of the Sweeps Festival|url=http://www.medway.gov.uk/leisurecultureandsport/events/sweepsfestival2017/historyofthesweepsfestival.aspx|website=Medway Council|access-date=June 17, 2017}}</ref>

On [[Guy Fawkes Night|Guy Fawkes' Day]] 2017, participants in the [[Lewes Bonfire]], the best known of the [[Sussex Bonfire Societies|Sussex bonfire tradition]], decided to abandon black face paint in their depiction of [[Zulu people|Zulu]] warriors.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Booth|first1=Robert|title=Lewes bonfire society ends tradition of blacking-up|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/nov/05/lewes-bonfire-society-ends-tradition-criticised-for-being-racist|work=The Guardian|date=November 5, 2017}}</ref>

On July 3, 2020, the [[Joint Morris Organisation]] announced that all three constituent bodies, representing the vast majority of Morris Dancing in the United Kingdom, would be actively moving to eliminate the use of full-face black makeup from their membership.<ref>{{cite web|title=Calling time on full-face black makeup|url=https://www.morrisfed.org.uk/2020/07/03/calling-time-on-full-face-black-makeup/|website=The Morris Federation|date=July 3, 2020|access-date=July 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200704162413/https://www.morrisfed.org.uk/2020/07/03/calling-time-on-full-face-black-makeup/|archive-date=July 4, 2020|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== ''The Black and White Minstrel Show'' ====
''[[The Black and White Minstrel Show]]'' was a British light entertainment show that ran for twenty years on BBC prime-time television. Beginning in 1958, it was a variety show which presented traditional American minstrel and country songs, as well as show tunes and music hall numbers, lavishly costumed. It was also a successful stage show which ran for ten years from 1962 to 1972 at the Victoria Palace Theatre, London. This was followed by tours of UK seaside resorts, together with Australia and New Zealand.

Due to its employment of artists wearing blackface, the show was seen by UK anti-racist groups such as the [[Campaign Against Racial Discrimination]], to be both racist and perpetuating ethnic stereotypes.

== Legacy ==
Blackface minstrelsy was the conduit through which black and black-influenced music, comedy, and dance first reached the white American mainstream.<ref name="Watkins 82" /> It played a seminal role in the introduction of African-American culture to world audiences.

{{blockquote|Though antebellum (minstrel) troupes were white, the form developed in a form of racial collaboration, illustrating the axiom that defined&nbsp;– and continues to define&nbsp;– American music as it developed over the next century and a half: Black innovations metamorphose into American popular culture when white performers learn to mimic black ones.|[[Gary Giddins]], jazz historian<ref>Gary Giddings, ''[[Bing Crosby]]: A Pocketful of Dreams, The Early Years 1903–1940'' (2001), Back Bay Books, p. 78. {{ISBN|0316886459}}.</ref>}}

Many of country's earliest stars, such as [[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmie Rodgers]]
and [[Bob Wills]], were veterans of blackface performance.<ref>Nolan Porterfield, ''Jimmie Rodgers: The Life and Times of America's Blue Yodeler'' (1979), University of Illinois Press, p. 262, {{ISBN|0252007506}}.</ref><ref>Charles Townsend, ''San Antonio Rose: The Life and Music of Bob Wills'' (1986), University of Illinois Press, {{ISBN|025201362X}}, p. 45.</ref><ref>Nick Tosches, ''Where Dead Voices Gather'' (2002), Back Bay, p. 66, {{ISBN|0316895377}}.</ref> More recently, the American country music television show ''[[Hee Haw]]'' (1969–1993) had the format and much of the content of a minstrel show, albeit without blackface.<ref>{{Harvnb|Lott|1993|p=5}}.</ref>

The immense popularity and profitability of blackface were testaments to the power, appeal, and commercial viability of not only black music and dance, but also of black style. This led to cross-cultural collaborations, as Giddins writes; but the often ruthless exploitation of black artistic genius, as well&nbsp;– by other, white performers and composers; agents; promoters; publishers; and record company executives.<ref name="autogenerated6">{{Harvnb|Toll|1974|p=51}}.</ref><ref>Barlow, William. "Black Music on Radio During the Jazz Age", ''African American Review'', Summer 1995.</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Frank|last=Kofsky|author-link=Frank Kofsky|year=1998|title=Black Music, White Business: Illuminating the History and Political Economy of Jazz|url=https://archive.org/details/blackmusicwhiteb00kofs|url-access=registration|publisher=Pathfinder Press|isbn=9780873488594}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-12-12-9912120442-story.html|title=The Great Jazz Swindle|last1=Reich|first1=Howard|date=December 12, 1999|work=[[Chicago Tribune]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190530225915/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-12-12-9912120442-story.html|archive-date=May 30, 2019|url-status=live|last2=Gaines|first2=William}}</ref><ref>[https://www.pbs.org/theblues/classroom/intwhitesblacks.html "Whites, Blacks and the Blues"], "The Blues" Teacher's Guide, PBS. Retrieved December 18, 2008.</ref>

While blackface in the literal sense has played only a minor role in entertainment in recent decades, various writers see it as epitomizing an appropriation and imitation of black culture that continues today. As noted above, Strausbaugh sees blackface as central to a longer tradition of "displaying Blackness".<ref name="autogenerated2" /> "To this day," he writes, "Whites admire, envy and seek to emulate such supposed innate qualities of Blackness as inherent musicality, natural athleticism, the composure known as 'cool' and superior sexual endowment", a phenomenon he views as part of the history of blackface.<ref name="autogenerated2" /> For more than a century, when white performers have wanted to appear sexy (like [[Elvis Presley|Elvis]]<ref>Kolawole, Helen.[https://www.theguardian.com/music/2002/aug/15/elvis25yearson.elvispresley "He Wasn't My King.]" ''The Guardian Unlimited'', August 15, 2002. Retrieved November 29, 2007.</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=61}}: not about "sexiness", but makes an explicit analogy between T. D. Rice with "Jump Jim Crow" and Elvis Presley with "Hound Dog".</ref> or [[Mick Jagger]]),<ref name="Strausbaugh-218">{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=218}} explicitly analogizes Al Jolson's style of blackface to Jagger and Eminem: "not mockery, but the sincere mimicry of a non-Black artist who loves Black culture (or what he thinks is Black culture) so dearly he can't resist imitating it, even to the ridiculous point of blacking up".</ref> or streetwise (like [[Eminem]]),<ref name="Strausbaugh-218" /><ref>Cunningham, Daniel Mudie. "[http://www.thefilmjournal.com/issue8/larryclark.html Larry Clark: Trashing the White American Dream]".{{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403153615/http://www.thefilmjournal.com/issue8/larryclark.html |date=April 3, 2016 }} ''The Film Journal''. Retrieved on August 25, 2006</ref> or hip (like [[Mezz Mezzrow]]),<ref>Roediger, David (1997). "The First Word in Whiteness: Early Twentieth-Century European Immigration", ''Critical White Studies: Looking Behind the Mirror''. Temple University Press, p. 355.</ref> they often have turned to African-American performance styles, stage presence and personas.<ref>{{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=40}}: "To this day, Whites admire, envy and seek to emulate such supposed innate qualities of Blackness as inherent musicality, natural athleticism, the composure known at 'cool' and superior sexual endowment." Conversely, up to and including the Civil Rights era, "aspirational" black performers imitated white style: {{Harvnb|Strausbaugh|2007|p=140}}.</ref> Pop culture referencing and cultural appropriation of black performance and stylistic traditions is a tradition with origins in blackface minstrelsy.<ref name="autogenerated6" />

This "browning", à la [[Richard Rodriguez]], of American and world popular culture began with blackface minstrelsy.<ref name="autogenerated6" /> It is a continuum of pervasive African-American influence which has many prominent manifestations today, among them the ubiquity of the [[Cool (aesthetic)|cool aesthetic]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Southgate |first1=Nick |title=Coolhunting, account planning and the ancient cool of Aristotle |journal=Marketing Intelligence & Planning |date=December 2003 |volume=21 |issue=7 |pages=453–461 |doi=10.1108/02634500310504304 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |first=Robert Farris |last=Thompson |jstor=3334749 |title=An Aesthetic of the Cool |journal=African Arts |volume=7 |issue=1 |year=1973 |pages=40–43, 64–67, 89–91|doi=10.2307/3334749 }} Citation for African (more specifically, Yoruba) origin of "cool".</ref> and [[Hip-hop|hip-hop culture]].<ref>MacBroom, Patricia. [http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2000/04/12/hiphop.html "Rap Locally, Rhyme Globally: Hip-Hop Culture Becomes a World-Wide Language for Youth Resistance, According to Course"]. News, ''Berkeleyan''. May 2, 2000. Retrieved September 27, 2006.</ref>

In 2018, according to ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' former [[Fox News]] host [[Megyn Kelly]] made remarks on her [[NBC]] show '' Megyn Kelly Today'' questioning why using "blackface" for a Halloween costume was racist.<ref>{{cite web|newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|url=https://www.wsj.com/video/megyn-kelly-blackface-remarks/EED8C124-6885-4F5D-97C3-12F801831D63?mod=mktw|title=Megyn Kelly's 'Blackface' Remarks|author=tas|date=October 25, 2018}}</ref>  Later that same year, Kelly was fired by NBC for her remarks.<ref name=NPR>{{cite web|publisher=[[NPR]]|title=Megyn Kelly Out At NBC's 'Today' Show|date=October 25, 2018|author=Folkenflik, David|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/10/25/660644000/megyn-kelly-out-at-nbc-after-blackface-remarks}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Blackface and Morris dancing]]
* [[Border Morris]]
* [[Brownface]]
* [[Censored Eleven]]
* [[Coon song]]
* [[Wigger]]
* [[The Story of Little Black Sambo|Little Black Sambo]]
* [[List of blackface minstrel songs]]
* [[List of blackface minstrel troupes]]
* [[List of entertainers who performed in blackface|List of entertainers known to have performed in blackface]]
* [[Negermusik]]
* [[Gay-for-pay#Film and television|Pinkface]], non-gay actors playing gay characters
* [[Racebending]]
* [[Redface]]
* [[Stereotypes of Africa]]
* [[Stereotypes of African Americans]]
* [[Portrayal of East Asians in American film and theater|Yellowface]]
* [[Whiteface (performance)|Whiteface]]
* [[Ralph Northam]]
* [[Stereotypes of Jews#Jewface|Jewface]]

== Footnotes ==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

== Further reading ==
* Abbott, Lynn, & Seroff, Doug (2008). ''{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20090514005656/http://www.upress.state.ms.us/books/842 Ragged but Right: Black Traveling Shows, "Coon Songs", and the Dark Pathway to Blues and Jazz.]}}'' Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
* {{cite web|last=Armstron-De Vreeze|first=Pamela|date=December 1997|work=[[Essence magazine|Essence]] |url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1264/is_n8_v28/ai_20039487|title=Surviving Zwarte Piet&nbsp;– a Black mother in the Netherlands copes with a racist institution in Dutch culture|access-date=November 15, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050516045544/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1264/is_n8_v28/ai_20039487|archive-date=May 16, 2005|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book|first=Marcel|last=Bas|title=Zwarte Piet: discriminerend of fascinerend?|publisher=Aspekt Uitgeverij|date=2013|isbn=978-9461534095}}
* {{cite book|author=Chude-Sokei, Louis|year=2005|title=The Last Darky: Bert Williams, Black-on-Black Minstrelsy and the African Diaspora|publisher=[[Duke University Press]]|isbn=978-0-8223-3643-3}}
* {{cite book|author=Cockrell, Dale|year=1997|title=Demons of Disorder: Early Blackface Minstrels and their World|publisher=Cambridge Studies in American Theatre and Drama|isbn=978-0-521-56828-9|url=https://archive.org/details/demonsofdisorder00cock}}
* {{cite book|first=David|last=Levinthal|year=1999|title=Blackface|publisher=Arena|isbn=978-1-892041-06-7}}
* {{cite book|first=W.T. Jr.|last=Lhamon|year=1998|title=Raising Cain: Blackface Performance from Jim Crow to Hip Hop|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]|isbn=978-0-674-74711-1|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/raisingcainblack0000lham}}
* {{cite book|last1=Hughes|first1=Langston|author-link1=Langston Hughes|last2=Meltzer|first2=Milton|year=1967|title=Black Magic: A Pictorial History of Black Entertainers in America|location=New York|publisher=Bonanza Books|isbn=978-0-306-80406-9|url=https://archive.org/details/blackmagicpictor00hugh}}
* {{cite book|last=Lott|first=Eric|author-link=Eric Lott|year=1993|title=Love and Theft: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class|location=New York|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-507832-9}}
* {{cite web|author=Malik, Sarita|url=http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=blackandwhim|title=The Black and White Minstrel Show|publisher=[[Museum of Broadcast Communications]]|access-date=January 8, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514104237/http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=blackandwhim|archive-date=May 14, 2013|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book|first=Michael|last=Rogin|year=1998|title=Blackface, White Noise: Jewish Immigrants in the Hollywood Melting Pot|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-21380-7}}
* {{Cite book|title=Way up North in Dixie: A Black Family's Claim to the Confederate Anthem|last1=Sacks|first1=Howard L.|last2=Sacks|first2=Judith Rose|publisher=Smithsonian Institution Press|year=1993|isbn=978-1-56098-258-6|location=Washington|url=https://archive.org/details/wayupnorthindixi00sack_0}}
* {{Cite book|title=Birth of an Industry: Blackface Minstrelsy and the Rise of American Animation|last=Sammond|first=Nicholas|publisher=Duke University Press.|isbn=978-0-8223-5852-7|location=Durham, NC|date=September 2015}}
* {{cite book |last1=Strausbaugh |first1=John |title=Black Like You: Blackface, Whiteface, Insult & Imitation in American Popular Culture |date=2007 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-1-58542-593-8 }}
* {{cite book|last=Toll |first=Robert C.|year=1974|title=Blacking Up: The Minstrel Show in Nineteenth-century America|url=https://archive.org/details/blackingupminstr00toll |url-access=registration |location=New York|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-8195-6300-2}}
* {{cite book|first=Mark|last=Twain|author-link=Mark Twain|year=1924|title=Mark Twain's Autobiography|chapter=XIX, dictated 1906-11-30| location=New York|publisher=Albert Bigelow Paine|lccn =24025122}}
* {{cite book|first=Mel|last=Watkins|year=1999|title=On the Real Side: A History of African American Comedy from Slavery to Chris Rock| location=Chicago, Illinois | publisher=Lawrence Hill Books|isbn=978-1-55652-351-9}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Blackface}}
{{Wikiquote}}

===General===
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20150217052007/http://www.bambizzoozled.com/Film_Movies_TV_Including_Blackface/ "Bambizzoozled&nbsp;– Blackface in Movies and Television"]}}
* [http://www.blackculturalstudies.org/m_diawara/blackface.html "The Blackface Stereotype"], [[Manthia Diawara]]
* [http://www.capetownmagazine.com/Tweede-Nuwe-Jaar-2009-Celebrates-2nd-New-Year/2009-01-03/0_37_9482 "Cape Minstrel Festival Kaapse Klopse"], ''Cape Town Magazine''.
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20061126045840/http://colorblind.typepad.com/the_colorblind_society/blackface/ Several blog posts from 2004 about blackface stories in the news, from the Colorblind Society]}}
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060227143627/http://www.mardigrasdigest.com/News/Feature_Zulu_Blackface.htm "Zulu Blackface: The Real Story!"]}}
*  Louis Chude-Sokei, {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20091222081039/http://thefanzine.com/articles/features/391/the_new_era_of_blackface "The New Era of Blackface"]}}, December 17, 2009
* [http://black-face.com/ "The History of Racist Blackface Stereotypes]
* {{cite journal |last1=Scott |first1=Mack |title=From Blackface to Beulah : Subtle Subversion in Early Black Sitcoms |journal=Journal of Contemporary History |date=October 2014 |volume=49 |issue=4 |pages=743–769 |doi=10.1177/0022009414538473 |jstor=43697336 |s2cid=159531616 }}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey8WQEJyGi0 Video: Blackface: History of a Controversy; Blackface in modern society, especially related to school.]

===Zwarte Piet===
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060212153450/http://www.boomchicago.nl/Section/Videos/ZwartePiet?page=2 Zwarte Piet?&nbsp;– Boom Chicago rap video satire of]}} [[Run-DMC]]'s "Christmas in Hollis"
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20191220040105/https://www.expatica.com/nl/about/culture-history/whos-that-with-santa-an-introduction-to-black-peter-100295/ Who's that with Santa? An introduction to Black Peter]}}
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20050429074435/http://www.ferris.edu/news/jimcrow/question/jan05/ "Who is Black Peter?"]}} from [[Ferris State University]]
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20210305155851/http://www.baobabconections.org/artikel.php?id=549 Zwarte Piet film by Adwa Foundation, Rotterdam, and the Global Afrikan Congress]}} 
* [http://www.zwartepieten.com/ Zwarte Piet] {{in lang|nl}}

===Balthazar in Spain===
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DrrWm46Z90 WanafriKa's vídeo]
* [http://www.thespoiler.co.uk/2009/01/08/real-madrid-star-upholds-spains-commitment-to-racism/ Press article "Real Madrid star upholds Spain's commitment to racism"], January 8, 2009.

{{Clowns}}
{{African American caricatures and stereotypes}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Blackface minstrelsy| ]]
[[Category:African-American cultural history]]
[[Category:African-American-related controversies]]
[[Category:Culture of the United States]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Casting controversies in film]]
[[Category:African-American cultural appropriation]]
[[Category:Ethnic humour]]
[[Category:Negrophilia]]
[[Category:Race-related controversies]]
[[Category:Race-related controversies in film]]
[[Category:Race-related controversies in the United States]]
[[Category:Race-related controversies in theatre]]
[[Category:Stereotypes of African Americans]]
[[Category:Theatre characters]]
[[Category:Vaudeville tropes]]
[[Category:Racism]]
[[Category:Ethnic and racial stereotypes]]