Iggy Azalea's 'Those People' Tweet Has Twitter on the Attack
07/04/2021 04:54 pm EDT
'Those People'
With varying levels of humor, users noted immediately that phrases like "those people" can be offensive and can trigger connotations of racism in a context like this. Some responded with memes indicating how they perceived the comment.
Critics
Many, if not most of Azalea's critics had pseudonyms on Twitter, so it was difficult to ascertain the race and background of the commenters. However, some argued that Banks should assume her critics were Black, and that they had more authority than her in deciding what is racist or offensive in a case like this.
Defensive
As Azalea continued responding without apologizing for the generalization, many users perceived her as increasingly defensive.
AAVE
Even without the wig, the makeup and the background dancers in this particular video, users argued that Azalea's whole brand was built on cultural appropriation, starting with the adoption of a Black American accent and the use of African-American Vernacular English (AAVE).
Unnecessary
Azalea's defenders continued to claim that this whole controversy was blown out of proportion, and voiced their belief that not as many people were really as upset by her video as the comments made it seem.
Familiarity
Azalea responded to one user with a friendly nickname "babe," and they were not pleased. They got some serious traction in followup posts implying that Azalea is racist.
Promotion
Finally, on Sunday morning Azalea broached the topic once again to sarcastically thank her critics "for dedicating your day to me and helping me promote." Critics did not appreciate having their concerns reduced to "hate."
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