Hollyweird and others go stupid for Halloween

[Adam]

Julianne Hough slammed for donning ‘black face’ Halloween costume

Former "Dancing With the Stars" pro Julianne Hough, 25, likely has a closet filled with fabulous costumes, but her Halloween selectionover the weekend was far from her finest.

The "Rock of Ages" star was photographed at a Halloween bash on Friday night, donning a racially offensive "black face" and a prison jumpsuit, impersonating the character "Crazy Eyes," played by Uzo Aduba, from the hit Netflix series "Orange is the New Black."

And the controversial move didn’t go unnoticed. Joan Duvall-Flynn, President of the Media Area Unit of NAACP of Pennsylvania, told FOX411 that Hough has some explaining to do.

"The current racial tensions in the United States require careful reflection as we relate to each other. If her behavior is a political statement, she should explain that," she said. "If her behavior is an act of impulsive insensitivity, she needs, as a public figure, to be more responsible. And, an apology for such insensitivity is appropriate."

While the actress was quick to apologize via Twitter, insisting that it was "never (her) intention to be disrespectful or demeaning to anyone in any way," and that she realizes her costume "hurt and offended people," some weren’t so quick to forgive her.

Now, unless I'm misunderstanding this, she was dressing up as a particular character who is Black. And assuming that's the case, why wouldn't she do whatever she did to get darker skin (which, frankly, just looks like a bad spray-tan job to me)?



And then there's this:



While I certainly think that dressing up as Trayvon Martin is in very poor taste, I still don't see doing that in black-face as racist in and of itself. Now, if you go through all of the pages there, it seems that at least the woman in the middle (and I have no idea who she is supposed to be) has apparently said some very not-PC things in the past, though I'm not really sure I would call what I saw from her "racist," either.




People have just gone completely overboard with this hyper-sensitivity stuff. Just because something someone says or does has some bizarre, distant, tertiary relationship to Black people somewhere, somehow, that does not just automatically mean that person is a racist. Good grief.



Unavailable for comment:

[Billy Jingo]

Unavailable for comment:

[Billy Jingo]

As far as black face, I tend to associate that with the minstrel stereotype in American culture that is overtly racist. I am not sure you can characterize the female in orange as a true black face routine but I can understand why someone would take it that way.

[Billy Jingo]

You should probably just stay away from black face stuff. Even if you are wholly innocent, you still look like a douche.

[gary m]

The hair makes it ok.

[phillygirl]

You should probably just stay away from black face stuff. Even if you are wholly innocent, you still look like a douche.

Agreed. Although I think the actress looks more like J. Boehner's flesh paint than minstrel stuff.

[Billy Jingo]

Agreed. Although I think the actress looks more like J. Boehner's flesh paint than minstrel stuff.

I am willing to forgive the Dutch when they celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas. But seriously ... wow.

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[Adam]

I am willing to forgive the Dutch when they celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas. But seriously ... wow.

.

[Billy Jingo]

There's actually a pretty decent argument going on in the Netherlands about Zwarte Piet. It is really cringe worthy but the tradition built up over a long period of time. Protests are getting more traction no matter how much they try to politically correct out the harsh edge (he has a black face from all the soot in the chimneys ... yea ... that's the ticket!).

[phillygirl]

Would it be racist if someone dyed their skin orange and went out as John Boehner for Halloween? I honestly ask bcause there is a line where a costume can be racially insensitive, but I'm not certain where exactly that line is. I've yet to hear that anyone trying to make themselves look like a famous white person is racist, so I'm not certain why trying to look like a black person is.

I agree, however, that I wouldn't do it.

[Billy Jingo]

Would it be racist if someone dyed their skin orange and went out as John Boehner for Halloween?

Probably not.

I honestly ask bcause there is a line where a costume can be racially insensitive, but I'm not certain where exactly that line is. I've yet to hear that anyone trying to make themselves look like a famous white person is racist, so I'm not certain why trying to look like a black person is.

You mean a black person putting on white face? Like that Eddie Murphy bit from several years ago or Dave Chappelle's white news anchor?

[phillygirl]

Probably not.



You mean a black person putting on white face? Like that Eddie Murphy bit from several years ago or Dave Chappelle's white news anchor?

Probably something like that. I don't really follow it that much. It just seems to me that dressing or acting "white" isn't ever considered racist, just funny, but the opposite isn't true.

In terms of skin colorization I actually find it funny that many of the hollywood startlets are tanning so much that their skin tone is almost as dark as many lighter skinned black people. Just a weird issue that I've noticed lately.

[Billy Jingo]

[Norm dePlume]

I've yet to hear that anyone trying to make themselves look like a famous white person is racist, so I'm not certain why trying to look like a black person is.

Because there is an historical tradition wherein a society that systematically subjugated black people reinforced the society's racism in minstrel shows featuring white actors wearing blackface and portraying black people as simpletons. And that never happened to white people. That's why.

Someone who sports a black toothbrush mustache and a greasy side-part bang-over hairstyle isn't necessarily antisemitic. But if they don't understand why people are looking at them funny, they should maybe crack a history book, you think?

[phillygirl]

Because there is an historical tradition wherein a society that systematically subjugated black people reinforced the society's racism in minstrel shows featuring white actors wearing blackface and portraying black people as simpletons. And that never happened to white people. That's why.

Someone who sports a black toothbrush mustache and a greasy side-part bang-over hairstyle isn't necessarily antisemitic. But if they don't understand why people are looking at them funny, they should maybe crack a history book, you think?

And there was a time in history when women were subjugated and reinforced society's sexism by putting men in dresses in female roles...now it's considered an art form in some segments of society. Let's face it, the portrayals of whites by blacks is usually not to show the respected side of white people. Minstrels were not just about racism either. In some ways they were a compliment to the song and dance traditions of African-Americans, while also refusing to allow them on their stages. This transformed to letting the blacks entertain at the great hotels, while not letting them stay there. At this point, that's no longer the case and blacks are free to make millions on their racist portrayals of whites, but the reverse is not true.