The physical features typical of Black women are seen as beautiful but not when they are on Black women. Think about it.
Meanwhile, are we all familiar with MAC Cosmetics? It's the makeup line that many people only dream of racking up on for their makeup collection. Their quality and variety of colors make a woman who doesn't even wear makeup dream about it.
In fact, MAC Cosmetics praise the idea of All Ages, All Races, All Sexes. So, when a Black woman, Aamito Stacie Lagum's lips (aamito_lagum) were recently featured on the Instagram page of MAC, within minutes it was swamped with hateful and racist comments.
The photo was meant to showcase MAC'S "Royal Romance" lipstick. Instead, her lips were considered as "fish lips" and "n**** lips." MAC clearly hasn't addressed the issue the way the issue should be handled, but I will. First and foremost, this woman is GORGEOUS!
If you follow Mac Cosmetics on Instagram, I assume you either love Mac, love makeup, interested in the cosmetology business, etc. Scroll down the page and notice the types of women featured. There's about a handful of women of color.
There are barely any close-ups of them. Regarding the close-ups of white women and their lips, you see comments about the lipliner being badly overdrawn or how the color pops or doesn't pop. So, why did the hateful comments of a Black woman's close-up become so viral?
We all remember when Kylie Jenner first decided to get her some lips. The response to them on social media skyrocketed and encouraged her to start her own lip line. They weren't "fish lips" or compared to Jay-Z's because now she's on fleek and charging $30 for her own lipsticks.
She had to change her appearance to become as popular she did. My point being, America loves what the Black woman got, so they appropriate it and make us look like we didn't already own it in the first place. We have always done that.
It is Black History all year. So, don't forget Khoisan woman Sara "Saartije" Baartman, stage-named Hottentot Venus, when she was paraded around the world like a circus act against her will because her Queen-like posture, kinky hair, curvy hips, and full lips were envied and glorified. I'm just saying.
Think about Black Face. I am going somewhere with this. White men weren't painting their face Black to just make a mockery of Black people, they did it because they love Black culture. Let me name a few influential white comedians. Paul Mooney. He's Black. Richard Pryor. No, he's Black. Eddie Murphy. Chris Rock. Whoopi Goldberg. Wanda Sykes. Mo'Nique.
Cedric the Entertainer. Bernie Mac. They are all individually and collectively unique in their Blackness. The appropriation is real when white comedians, white models, white TV stars think they own cornrows or have very right to make jokes about what it feels like to be a Black man/woman living in the ghetto. My point is, where would America be without Black culture?
I have a personal love-hate relationship with makeup. I get it. It's an art. It is an art no matter who, what race, what shade, what age, or what ethnicity decides to wear make-up. Make-up shaming is another conversation.
Besides, I am very proud of Aamito Stacie Lagum's lips on the Instagram page of MAC Cosmetics. Not only does she look like me but she proves that Black beauty is understated and underestimated.
She's got those lips Queens once had draped with gold and poise. Aamito wore those colors as my ancestors once had to protect their skin. Instead, they stained their skin with clay. My ancestors once had those lips.
My mother has those lips and does my grandmothers. So for those who called those lips "n**** lips." I'll take that. Our "n**** lips" are what you aspire to have.
You mad? Deal with it.
