Does Beyoncé’s Loreal Campaign Offend You?

February 14th, 2012 - By MN Editor

L’Oreal and their spokeswoman Beyoncé are making headlines again. (The company who was once accused of excessive lightening the singer’s skin.) Now people are pointing the finger at how Beyoncé chose to identify herself.

Some are taking offense to the fact that instead of listing just African American, Beyoncé mentions the fact that she’s Native American and French.

The argument is that it’s assumed that black people in America (and across the world, really) are by default a mixture of several ethnicities, so why take the time to highlight your non-black heritage.

Others speculate that this is much to do about nothing.

What do you think? Should we be offended by the way Beyoncé chooses to identify herself or is this ad indicative of black people taking pride in being anything but black?

Read what people have to say about this topic and get a full analysis of the controversy at theGrio.com.

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Bevm924

deff not everybody should know thier family history and heritage and the ones that do should be proud of who they are and where they came from… also this is a cosmetic brad they want to emphasize how well the makeup works for all skin types and ethnicties. some uptight people who try to argue for no cause should find something better to argue about like what about the global depletioon of our fresh water! yea people we are running out of water and worse there are companes like veolia and nestle to nname a few you might know yea these bastards actually own water… lakes rivers etc in bolivia they were actually not allowed to collect rainwater because a u.s water company claimed the exclusive right to all the water in bolivia and this led to a civil war! go complain and get angry about that!
kmn

She looks like she is of mixed heritage, so it’s not like it’s a surprise. I mean, look at her mom! And this seems to be the 1st time she’s acknowledged it. Most black people shout their mixed heritage from the roof tops. Why be offended?
Annelli

I have Native American in my blood line as well….thus the high cheek bones…..just leave this woman alone. Now when she does do some crazy stuff, people dismiss it, but when it’s something as simple as this ad, they are all over her. SMH.
Lexy_kenni

she is creole! I am also and proud of it.. It is a creole thing.. you guys wouldnt understand!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1370262072 Vanessa Lewis

I wouldn’t be offended at all. She is paying tribute to her mothers side of the family that are Creole! Just like she named her clothing line Dereon. It was to keep that connection with her Creole heritage.
http://www.facebook.com/kimberly.danielle1 Kimberly Danielle

i’m not offened at all. revealing her ethnic background works into the pitch of the ad. at least, that’s what i took from it. as we all know, black women and other women of color have a hard time finding foundations that match our various skin tones and colors.
http://www.facebook.com/kimberly.danielle1 Kimberly Danielle

i’m not offened at all. revealing her ethnic background works into the pitch of the ad. at least, that’s what i took from it. as we all know, black women and other women of color have a hard time finding foundations that match our various skin tones and colors.
stephanie

Offend me? No. It’s just unnecessary…and, in some ways, pathetic…you know? Yes, she’s pathetic. Always repping that 0.3% french blood.’ Sure, it’s fine to acknowledge a blood line? But who in the hell would brag about a lineage that was begat out of RAPE! I mean, really? LOL
The girl is not even creole. She’s ‘of creole descent’ and here she is running around acting as though she’s half-half. I have a white g-g-grandfather and a white grandaddy on the maternal side. I’m not unique. This is black america. I’m not making a big ‘thing’ of it. Ugh. She’s so f’ed up…. The more that I see of this woman, the more that I just dislike her. She’s, like, the most ‘air-headed’ black woman in creation…I swear.
http://www.squidoo.com/lottery-predictions Lottery Predictions

I think what he’s saying is valid to a point. If no one knows how to solve d[(x^2)/3x] then we cant create the program to solve it. It is essential to learn the fundamentals of each subset of mathematics (algebra calculus) so that people do know how to do it.
emm

where are all the comments?
J Bianca Jackson

I’m offended that people think that it’s wrong to acknowledge the total of one’s heritage. Moreover, all of the spokeswomen for this campaign break down their ethnic origins.The point of the commercial is to show that beauty comes from everywhere and to be proud of it.
http://profile.yahoo.com/ADIFD2ZY6BDMK3PQAMRVPYORNE B.

I am not offended by Beyonce’s loreal ad but i am offended by jennifer lopez’s. Her commercial lists her as 100% Puerto Rican. PUERTO RICAN is not a race! I think that Beyonce was embracing everything that she is and J. Lo was simply trying to deny the fact that as a Puerto Rican she is a mixture of African, Native and White…i mean look at her a** for God’s Sake!
uniquefashionista

When I first saw the commercial, it threw me for a loop. It threw me bcause I didn’t know, not because I thought she was trying to be something she wasn’t. Then I saw JLO’s and it said 100% Puerto Rican. It made me think about researching my ancestors to see what I could learn about my history. I think the commercial is doing what it was meant to do, to make people pay attention. We all should know that people are always gonna have something to say when Beyonce is the topic.
Am3lya_tandi

”
it’s assumed that black people in America (and across the world, really) are by default a mixture of several ethnicities” that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard! I’m Bantu and I’m 100% sure that I’m not mixed with anything.
http://profile.yahoo.com/MBS3XQT4HZIM63BJ7KYL22UELA Kendra

I don’t think anyone who isn’t jealous would be offended, she is African American YES but people think because she is she has to be black…she is not a black woman. It is like people get angry when an African American woman looks lighter…who cares she can look however she wants and present herself in whatever way she wants to.
http://www.facebook.com/imani.finn Imani Finn

Clearly most Black people in America are not 100% African, this is clear. But most of Black people in America also probably do NOT know directly what they are mixed with. So why would you state that you have some Native American blood in you if you’re not sure? That sounds stupid which makes it an invalid argument. Like me, Beyonce knows her lineage pretty darn well. My grandfather on my mom’s side was full Indonesian, my grandmother on my dad’s side was full Irish. Why would I NOT acknowledge that? Thats a slap in the face to those relatives that came before me. I will be seen as a Black girl, and that is what I primarily identify with, but I will not mask the other half of my ancestry that is so clearly defined just to appease some idiots that think I’m ashamed to be black.
Nina Dashotta

Hell yeah I’m offended!! Because MN feels I should be offended by what someone else identifies themselves as. It’s an insult to my job applications….*rolls eyes*
Shaneebabychick

She’s part creole which is a mixture of all those races plus Spanish…she should not go around claiming that she’s part French and part Native American becasue she’s part Creole thats a mixed race!
Pianoprincess27

No one asks to be a certain race. What’s the big deal? The world still sees her as African-American or Black. If you have a mother of a different race and a daddy that’s black, you’re going to be labeled as black. We’re talking about Beyonce here people, she’s not the average black woman; anyone can see that another race is dominating in her ethnicity besides black, so why hide that side? Look at her mom for goodness sake!! I’m done:-)
Akosua123

beyonce ye kwasia

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