Kylie Jenner Accused of Blackfishing Yet Again After Revealing Dark Tan

By Allison Schonter

Kylie Jenner has once again been accused of blackfishing. The Keeping Up with the Kardashians alum landed herself in the center of controversy on Sunday after she shared a video to her Instagram Story of her showing off her baby bump as she listened to "Smoke" by Don Toliver, featuring HVN and SoFaygo. After viewing the clip, many social media users noted that Jenner's complexion looked much darker than usual, an observation that immediately sparked criticism.

Reacting to the video, one social media user wrote, "nobody talks about kylie's blackfishing huh," with another asking, "why is her skin color like that?" Another person tweeted, "clearly she's trying to look black," with a fourth Twitter user blasting the entire KarJenner clan, asking," how many times we gotta reiterate that the Jenner daughters are just WHITE. mayo white. not a bit of ethnic white... Kylie's blackfishing is even more egregious because she as white as white can be." Another person joked that Rachel Dolezal — the former activist who infamously pretended to be Black, despite being born to white parents, and even became the president of an NAACP chapter in Spokane, Washington — could "play Kylie in the biopic."

This is far from the first time Jenner has been accused of blackfishing, a modern term for a form of cultural appropriation that describes when a social media figure or celebrity attempts to appear Black, typically through the use of makeup or editing. Back in August 2020, the makeup mogul faced accusations of blackfishing after she edited the caption of an Instagram photo from "brown skinned girl" to "brown eyed girl." In 2019, she faced criticism over a photo alongside Jordyn Woods, with many noting that Jenner's complexion was almost the same as her former friend's, with one person writing at the time, "why are kylie jenner (white) and jordyn (black) the SAME skin color?!?"

Jenner is not alone in the controversy. Her sisters have also waded similar criticism, with both Kim and Khloe Kardashian being accused of cultural appropriation after they wore traditionally Black hairstyles on several occasions. They have also faced blackfishing accusations for darkening their skin. Kendall Jenner, meanwhile, faced backlash in October 2018 after her hair was styled in what appeared to be an Afro for her Vogue photoshoot.

Other celebrities have also faced accusations of blackfishing, including Little Mix singer Jesy Nelson, who earlier this month was accused of the act in the music video for her debut solo single, "Boyz," featuring Nicki Minaj. Nelson later addressed the backlash, saying in a statement that her "intention was never, ever to offend people of color with this video and my song." Jenner has not responded to the backlash at this time.

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