SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES
Dori’s heart breaks for girl caught in Shoreline ‘blackface’ fallacy
Jun 11, 2015, 2:25 PM | Updated: 4:07 pm
Yearbook photo brings controversy to Shorewood HS http://t.co/5mCUoX6LHC pic.twitter.com/GtYKYy6Ufm
— NorthWest Cable News (@NWCN) June 11, 2015
Claims that a Shoreline student was trying to be racist by slathering on bronzer are ridiculous, KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson said.
An image from a Snapchat was published in the Shorewood High School yearbook showing a Caucasian teen wearing a lot of bronzer with the caption “do you think this is my color ( [sic].”
There has been public outcry over the image, with some people calling it racist and “blackface.”
The Shoreline School District already distributed the yearbooks, so it’s too late to hide the image. However, the district is asking students to bring their yearbooks back so the image can be covered with a sticker, spokesperson Craig Degginger said.
“We sent out a message to Shorewood families apologizing and letting them know we will be offering an alternative image in the yearbook,” he said.
The image is one of many on the page dedicated to Snapchat images. Snapchat allows users to take a photo, edit it, and send it to another person. The receiving party can view the image for a short amount of time and it is then deleted.
Though some are calling it racist, students told KING 5 that the girl in the photo meant no harm. Everyone they spoke to said the girl is “really nice,” Dori said.
“What I’ve heard is she was trying to look like Snookie from ‘Jersey Shore,'” Dori explained. “This is one of the most ridiculous controversies that is totally made up by the people who are claiming this is controversial.”
Other students say it sends the wrong message, whether the girl meant to be offensive or not. Degginger said the image is “clearly hurtful,” Dori said.
“Just because one person makes up something, doesn’t mean it’s clearly hurtful,” Dori added.
Whether or not the image was supposed to be offensive or not, Degginger said it was a mistake made by people responsible.
“That’s what we need to look into,” he said. “What failed in that oversight and why wasn’t it detected as something that would be hurtful.”
Dori said his heart is broken for the girl. She was just goofing around and now she must feel like she is hated.
