Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Wears Blackface for Halloween

[BeachGirlFLA]

Those are certainly not cheers a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader is hearing for her Halloween costume last weekend. Whitney Isleib covered herself in brown paint and posed as rapper Lil' Wayne for a party. But now she is at the center of controversy as the pictures circulate on the Internet.

According to CBS News.com, photos of the blond cheerleader dressed up as the metal-mouthed rapper were originally posted to Facebook. But as often happens, those supposedly private pictures went viral, eventually appearing on the sports blog Deadspin.com, causing a furor.

Neither the Dallas Cowboys nor its iconic cheerleaders squad would officially comment on the incident. However, a team spokesperson said that management is aware of the situation and is addressing it.

Football fans seem torn on whether this was harmless fun or extremely racist.

"If she wasn't a Dallas cheerleader, would it really matter?" Cowboys fan Laura Pyhrr told CBS 11 Dallas. "It's Halloween, you know. You get to go how you want to go."

"I'm assuming you would hold yourself up to a higher standard - especially if you're playing for the Cowboys," said Richard Vasquez, another fan. "But wow, not much I can say about that -- it speaks for itself."

Blackface, where white people use dark theatrical makeup to play black people, rose to prominence in the 19th century but became associated with racism by the mid-20th century.


My comment: Talk about insensitive to racial issues to say the least. I wonder how her African American teammates feel about this.

 

[just4today]

Do we not have enough real things to worry about? This is ridiculous.

 

[wdwmom2]

My personal feelings....no big deal. No different than if one of her African American cheerleader teammates dressed up as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and used make-up to make her skin look lighter.

If someone dresses with with a pointy hat, put a wart on their nose, and rode a broom around on Halloween, would that be racist against witches????

Nothing to get your panties up in a wad over!!!

 

[Rora]

My personal feelings....no big deal. No different than if one of her African American cheerleader teammates dressed up as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and used make-up to make her skin look lighter.

If someone dresses with with a pointy hat, put a wart on their nose, and rode a broom around on Halloween, would that be racist against witches????

Nothing to get your panties up in a wad over!!!

I kind of have to agree. She was dressing up as a rap star- it'd be different if she said she a homeless black man for example, you know?

While I don't think it's a good costume anyways and while it is insensitive considering the history of blackface, I don't think it's a huge deal. The media should be focusing on the skankified costumes for 11 year olds, IMO!

 

[Scurvy]

I know it won't make much difference to those who are offended by this, but from the picture that doesn't appear to be typical "blackface". The blackface that was considered so offensive utilized black makeup and a white ring around the person's mouth. It was intended to play on stereotypes which are now considered offensive. (Rightfully so, of course.) The cheerleader looks like she was actually trying to use makeup to look like Lil' Wayne rather than trying to be offensive. I don't think it was the smartest move, but I don't see why it should be considered any more offensive than when those actors (Wayons, maybe?) used makeup to look like white girls in that "White Chicks" movie. (Though now that I think about it, I think they were trying to portray negative stereotypes about white girls, so that might be even more offensive.)

ETA - In my opinion I don't see it as racist, though I do think she should have figured there would be backlash so she probably should have avoided it anyway.

 

[luvmy3]

So white people can't even dress up as a black rap star without it being racist. Give me a break

 

[BeachGirlFLA]

Interesting...I'm not usually politically correct at all (I say what I think and don't sugarcoat it) but for some reason this bothers me....not to the point that I think she should be kicked off the team or suspended or anything but I definitely think it was insensitive.

 

[Planogirl]

I don't see the big deal. She was trying to go as a certain famous person who happens to be black and did her best to look like him. I don't see how that's racist at all.

 

[bama106]

I don't see the big deal. She was trying to go as a certain famous person who happens to be black and did her best to look like him. I don't see how that's racist at all.

I agree, no big deal!!!

 

[DeluxePrincess]

I don't find it offensive. She was trying to portray a specific performer. I would not have a problem with a black person wearing makeup to look like Elvis or something. Things are just too PC these days. However, the guy with her is probably offending the vampire population. LOL

 

[pearlieq]

I know it won't make much difference to those who are offended by this, but from the picture that doesn't appear to be typical "blackface". The blackface that was considered so offensive utilized black makeup and a white ring around the person's mouth. It was intended to play on stereotypes which are now considered offensive. (Rightfully so, of course.) The cheerleader looks like she was actually trying to use makeup to look like Lil' Wayne rather than trying to be offensive.

Yeah, I wouldn't call this blackface. That's a completely different thing.

She wearing body makeup to look like the person she's portraying for Halloween. How is that racist? Doesn't Fred Amisen do that every week on SNL?

 

[Magic Mom]

It was a costume. No big deal.

 

[BeachGirlFLA]

You guys have basically changed my mind....especially the poster who made the comment about the Wayans Brothers.

 

[ols386]

Here's a clip from last weekend on TODAY Show....Lester Holt's Halloween costume...he dressed up like Susan Boyle. He's a black man dressed up like a white woman. I'm not really sure if he has on make-up or not, but no one seemed to be disturbed about this.

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/lester-holt-as-susan-boyle-strangely-hot/

Sorry if this is a bit ot.

 

[FireDancer]

As a PP said there is a difference between "Blackface" and dressing as a black celebrity. One is to perpetuate a stereotype while the other is to be a character. I see no big deal, and see it as no different than the Wayans brothers portrayal of white chicks in the aptly named "White Chicks".

Intent is important and I don't see any racist intent in her costume.

 

[OK!]

Yeah, I definitely wouldn't call that blackface either. I don't see what the fuss was about...to me, it's no different than that oooooold SNL sketch where Eddie Murphy dressed as a white man for a day to see what it was like.

 

[TanyaLovesPooh]

My personal feelings....no big deal. No different than if one of her African American cheerleader teammates dressed up as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and used make-up to make her skin look lighter.

If someone dresses with with a pointy hat, put a wart on their nose, and rode a broom around on Halloween, would that be racist against witches????

Nothing to get your panties up in a wad over!!!

ITA

 

[ontariomonkey]

I bet lots of white people dressed up like Obama. He's black (well, mixed race or whatever), is that racist too?

 

[DebbieB]

My comment: Talk about insensitive to racial issues to say the least. I wonder how her African American teammates feel about this.

There are other pictures on the website with her African-American teammates at the same party. They didn't seem to have a problem. It was a private party, not a public event.

 

[C.Ann]

So basically if you become a Dallas cheerleader you sign your life over to them - even when you're not cheering? Thanks, but no thanks..