BLACKFACE Definition & Meaning

blackface

[ blak-feys ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

Theater.
1. an entertainer, especially in a minstrel or vaudeville show, made up in the role of a Black person. By the mid-20th century, these entertainers had declined in popularity because their comic portrayal of negative racial stereotypes was considered offensive.
2. facial makeup, as burnt cork, used in this role:
  They appeared in blackface.
3. imitation of Black skin tone, speech, traditional dress, etc., by a person who is not Black:
  White rappers are performing vocal blackface when they rap in a dialect they appropriated from the African American community.
Printing. a heavy-faced type, usually darker than boldface.

blackface

/ ˈ��æ��ˌ�ڱ�ɪ�� /

noun

1. a performer made up to imitate a Black person
2. the make-up used by such a performer, usually consisting of burnt cork
a breed of sheep having a dark face

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of blackface¹

First recorded in 1695–1705; black + face

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

A San Diego middle school agreed to expunge the suspension of a student who was accused of attending a football game in blackface in 2023.

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England women captain Heather Knight has admitted a charge over a social media post in 2012 when she was pictured in blackface.

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Eight years later, “30 Rock” producers pulled the episode from streaming and syndication for its use of blackface.

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Two former students of a Mountain View high school were awarded $1 million and tuition reimbursement after they were expelled for wearing acne face masks, which were interpreted as “blackface,” and sued.

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The author, Karen Valby, skillfully maps the ugliness of a segregated art form in which too recently, blackface was still defended.

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