Black Women Respond To Nina 

I agree!

there was obviously a reason why they would have chosen her?

exactly

+Steph Infection agreed

+safia qureshi Because Hollywood horrible and would rather cast a thin, small nosed, afro-Latina than just cast a person that fits the role better. They're also using her name as a way to get people to watch the movie, which also shows their greed over integrity

Yes true!

+Nick P. yess I agree or even lupita

YAS!

+BillionDollarBaby agreed

+Nick P. why because she has a darker skin tone?

true!

+Gwendolyn Bien-Aime Uzo Aduba would have been the best choice. Unfortunately, this movie was actually made several years ago and she was an unknown at the time.

Melanny Olaso The objections have more to do with the fact that the people who made this movie had to use extensive makeup and prosthetics so Zoe Saldana would look like Nina Simone. Yes, her being a dark skinned black woman is absolutely relevant to this story. Nina Simone was one of the US's greatest singer/songwriters, but because she wasn't light-skinned and dainty, she was difficult to market to the white masses. So knowing this about Nina Simone, it's pretty damn problematic to select an actress who hasn't experienced this particular struggle firsthand. However, it's also problematic to claim that Afro-Latinos aren't really black, as many people are claiming. The women in this video did NOT make that claim, for the record, but many people have said this, including a lot of commenters on this video.

+Melanny Olaso My objection has nothing to do with the race of Zoe Saldana. It doesn't matter if she is "Afro-latina" or "Afro-American". The problem is the horrifying usage of dark makeup and prosthetics used in her portrayal of a naturally dark-skinned woman (which by definition is blackface). Ladydontekno explains the situation perfectly.

+ladydontekno Thanks for the explanation. I only recently saw the trailer for the movie and didn't know when it was made. By the way, your response to Melanny Olaso is perfectly said!!

obi was here or the lady was just a good actor. By ur logic we should stop Hamilton from playing

obi was here to hire you based solely on ur skin color would be racist

Dave Tyler ummm Hamilton doesn’t use black face soooo.....

Chelsea R'Kyra Akbas no they play white peoples parts. Hamilton was white. Therefor a white guy should play him

Dave Tyler omg, Hamilton was just using a diverse a cast to diversify Broadway cause their aren’t a lot of POC on Broadway and I live in Nyc so I know how that type of casting works. They all rather have someone lighter. But when your making a movie about a dark skin African American singer who’s main attribute is dark skin why take a lighter actor and put her in black face. It’s that and also the fact Hollywood isn’t that diverse either so while Hamilton is helping diversify Broadway this movie isn’t.

A month late

+Maya Mal you're profile picture matches with you're comment

LOL!!!

+Travis McCormick nice last name

I really think Viola Davis would be amazing as Nina.

maybe her acting skills are what landed her the roll

annette thomas yes she can. Zoe is a good actor. She physically was not right for this role but she can act.

Zoe Saldana isn't black, she doesn't identity as it. But Nina is in a better places not worrying about us

They should've used lauryn hills for her

@@Samuel115s lupita is a better actress and fits this role perfectly.

Someone who gets it

+Chayse Tyler I mean they literally explain that in the video and ppl are still in the comments acting obtuse

Yes I cant see a lot of ignorant people i the comment section " she is latino, no black" however how cn you even said only americans black women have struggles? please ALL black women in all the american continen light nd dark have had discrimination before.

Exactly

***** did i say American black woman ...No. colorism is a big issue in America,Africa,and all over Asia.But it's also an issue in the film industry. Darker skin woman who could of got a major start in that role gotten turn down. Black woman would have just preferred a darker tone actress who could of fit with the role more play the part cause they know that struggle of being told "their not pretty because their skin. I would of rather had one of the black cast members play the role of Nina.

+Shanell Adams it's not all about complexion... A million darker complexion actors could of auditioned but if they weren't as good as the lighter complexion actor they won't get the part

+Shanell Adams tell mems8mething then why there not s problen whe a dark skinned black qctor take roles of a light skinned black people? light skinned black people fac3 no only discrimination of the ither races but as well of their own black comunity. And I have said this and will reeat it, black people will destroy their own people.

#truth

I honesty tried to find fault in your words just because I'm sick and tired of the racism and bashing that is put into whites, but I can't really say anything because this is 500% true lol

+Miranda Myers Hey! Thanks for that! One thing I would say though is that 90% of the time, PoC aren't bashing white people, we're simply pointing out the differences in our walks of life as a direct result in the difference in our color; call it the stain left by slavery on society. We can all work together to change that if we stop getting in our feelings so easily. Also, PoC can't be racist to white people. :) prejudiced, ignorant, stereotypical, bigoted? Yes. Racist? No. Racism describes a system of disadvantage based on race. As PoC were (and still are to an extent today) seen as "lesser" we don't stand to benefit from this system. For example, if a black person speaks out about something (like this video for example) sure, we'll have a debate, march or protest but as you've seen from the lack of convictions for brutal police killings of black people, not much changes. But let the right white person call a black person a thug or a Muslim a terrorist and they could be killed, imprisoned or at the very least vilified.

+KealSpeaks Say it again!!!!

+Miranda Myers your white entitlement is showing! What the heck does that have to do with anything he is saying? Lmao

Exactly.

+Zoey Legend I don't think you understand the black community is very complex the lighter skinned black people get treated highly and get better jobs and roles while the darker skinned individuals get put down and don't get anything and it's way worst for women. It's bad because Nina talked about colorism and oppressionof being a darker skinned female it's a slap in the face to put someone lighter and probably didn't go through any of her struggles it's like doing a bio on Harvey milk but they cast Charlie sheen as Harvey milk it's a slap in the face I hope u understand

+Zoey Legend black face is really bad. It's when Hollywood (or movies in general) will take someone (usually a white) and colour their skin to look like another race. Black face is oppressive because not only was it an old way whites made fun of black people back then but because no one should try and look a different race they are not. Nina is a good role model for the black community and when they decide to create a film of her, they don't have her played by a black person, instead they hire someone and but paint in their skin hoping it'll suffice, and that in itself is already horrible.

Yesss

+Renny Vargas That is not the point. Whether you paint black skin on a white person or darker black skin on a lighter black person, it is still black face and still inappropriate on so many levels. They are making her darker than she is when they could have easily and more appropriately hired/cast someone who was able to portray Nina.

Peter Griffin michela coel looks so much like nina

Definitely.

but can they sing tho?

She'd be better than this hag, but she's too pretty and a bit dainty. One of the challenges that Nina Simone faced was the fact that she had features that would not be considered to be desirable (wide stereotypically "black" features) and "couldn't be marketed as sexy "

great logic

our lord and savior Jesus has arrived

Legitimate

you wish you were Jesus Christ

+Nikolaj Henriksen hmm..... makes sense

Usagi Felton A real black army

@Stinkmeaner She's Dominican and have defied being called "black" in the past. She conveniently claimed her "blackness" when she gotten this role.

lol

+404errorfilenotfound they would not be ninjas if you were able to spot them :D

lmao. your comment was better than the trailer

me too

OMG MW TOO! 😂😂😂😂😂😂

Yes they were upset

Broke With Expensive Taste no ohh h

I'm Black and I am not mad. You should focus your energies and anger on something that really matters. I suspect that the casting of a Hollywood movie is not one of them

Ivy Yang Exactlyyyyy....

Ivy Yang you realize the last time we didn't allow someone into a role because of their skin tone, we called it the Jim crow laws

It's not because of her skin tone. It's the fact that they did black face on a light skinned women instead of just getting a dark skinned female.

Ivy STFU. Stop pretending you care or even understand. Your opinion is invalid.

Loriana Hines that's always happened in movies. It's called acting. There are white people who tan their skin to be darker or who lighten their skin to be lighter. People who gain weight when they're skinny or lose weight when they're fat. They change themselves to be that character. It's acting. We have great character actors like Gary Oldman and he has changed himself Every which a way to be someone that he is not. To tell a story. Right now he is in a movie about one of the most well-known British people in the world and no one is saying oh my God he's not fat? or why wouldn't they choose a fat person to play this role? or he's not bald why would they choose him? a but when they choose a ball person to play that role oh my God he's not old why not choose an old person to they play that role? No he spent hours in a chair putting prosthesis own so he can play a role so he could do his job... because he is an actor. Women play roles that are for men. Men play roles that are for women because their job when they get up in the morning is to be somebody else. I'm just saying...

Loriana Hines Quite honestly choosing another actress possibly even unknown who closely resembles Nina would do just fine. However will this unknown actress bring the star power that Zoe has to being the big bucks for this bio. It's about money, zoe is brown and that is close enough to Nina. Make up and a few additions with fill in the rest. That's Hollywood for you.

Tracy Edmonson I agree!

Damn you're right! Uzo Aduba would have been amazing in this role. Or Viola Davis, someone older considering the period in Nina Simone's life they were trying to portray. It's a damn shame and a missed opportunity.

THIS IS EXACTLY IT

RU-vid Addict im mad about both. She isn't black enough and that's an actual argument. They dressed her up in black face. I would be upset if they got an actual black women who was light skinned. Its disrespectful.

WhatReallyMatters Zoe Saldana is still Black, darkskinned or not

@@chaysewhite8766 she's still white you ignorant moron

Duh that's why she put more black on her face.

Its insulting to Nina nothing else said

aren't you early

Miriadel Boursiquot Aren't I usually? :)

I'm so early this comment was done one minute ago

lol

me

+eviandajbeauty *unbothered

+Vanja Dobric that's not the point. The point is that it's black face and there's a violent history behind black face.

+Princess Daisy but Nina's own family has spoken out about how Nina would've wanted an "African American" to portray her. Why would a woman who was very secure in her own skin and proud of it want a woman who is Dominican and puerto rican to put on black face AND a fake nose to play her in a movie?

Exactly!

Such an arrogant comment

To*

lmao for real.

@@aliciamaradiaga486 oh stfu. Guarantee you're another clueless white female pretending to understand. No one needs you to validate ANYTHING. You're the type that goes around calling every other white person "racist'. Go away.

@@aliciamaradiaga486 you're no more "priveleged" than I am. You just THINK you are. And that's the problem.

@@mrsx7944 I’m Hispanic born and raised in Latin America 😂😂😂 Why you fighting with a 5yo comment you weirdo

Nicole Vanessa Zoe shouldn’t have been the right match, I agree, but she’s still Black

+Shana Hernandez so the problem isn't that she's not dark enough it's that someone else could have taken her role? Why give the role to people who aren't as good at the job just because they're darker? Zoe is a great actress and earned that role, they don't just pick 1 person at random and say "you're hired" they do casting and pick out the right casts.

+RoyalGaming It is that she isn't dark enough. As I said, the problem is that people keep saying what you are saying and assume that there are not people that are that dark that could have played her. There are actresses out there that match her features and skin tone that are phenomenal at what they do as actresses. Yet, they didn't get approached to play the part. It's about the fact that they put her in blackface instead of trying to find someone that can actually represent. Even Zoe in an interview said she didn't really think she was right for the part but thought the story should be told. It's really all about what the last girl said, the film is about her struggles as a DARK black woman. Why couldn't they just find someone that is dark that could play her. When I watched the clips before seeing their reaction, even I was so distracted by her makeup.

Scout Lee WTF kind of school do u go too

@@moneymoney7900 🤣🤣🤣

Karen Thomas um... she did state she was black.

Yeah. I remember watching an Afro-Latino documentary on RU-vid a while back and she actually claimed her blackness. This was way before it was popular to do so like today.

She's still Mixed race

they will

egytians were not black

D G.G. They definitely were not white

yeah they were middle eastern aka brown, cleopatra was white tho

sazzia, "African" doesn't mean "black".

+kmross73 Lol exactly and rue is black in the book.

idk

Nina was all about her dark skin so this is an insult to her memory

Nina Simone.

basically, Nina Simone, a darker skinned black woman is being portrayed by a lighter skinned black/mixed woman using blackface when they could've just got a dark skinned actor

+isobel broomfield no that's not it! read a bit about Nina Simone and who she was.

+nienke huijbens Just because it's not used in jest doesn't mean it isn't offensive. I admire Zoe, but this isn't right - this is saying that darker skinned women can't even play a darker skinned woman. This is an issue today because colorism still has an impact on the way people are treated today - the deeper question to this issue is why couldn't a darker black woman with these actual features be cast in this part. This, technically isn't blackface, but it is still offensive and is not just movie makeup.

+nienke huijbens exactly! the fact they said 'why dont they cast another woman with darker skin', well isnt that hypocritical? She got the part because she's a good actor not so she could ""ofend"" women by becoming more similar to the real woman (nina simone)

laylah2002 It's not hypocritical to want to be represented in the media, and to pay a real tribute to someone who fought for equality. If you don't see the horrible irony in a lighter skinned woman painting herself darker to play a dark women who advocated equal treatment for women of darker complexions you need to read a book.

Jojo i see what you mean, but maybe they just thought she'd play the part well?

nienke huijbens there was a darker woman who could have played it just as well if not better if they bothered to look and give the opportunity.

So was I..lmao 😂😂😂😂

XD that was wrong as hell

franko columbo 😂😂😂✌🏾️

LOL ..This is just the reverse of that .

Now this is what we're not going to talk about, I can only take so much disrespect, one at a time please, lol

exactly!!

That is not the point of the video but okay 🙄

Look up colorism. It's sad because she is a reason why darker skinned girls were influenced to love their skin tone. And instead of getting a good actress with a dark skin tone . They went as far as putting dark makeup on her.

you weren't listening at all, were you? If Zoe were to have kept her natural skin color, this would not be a discussion. The fact is in order to play this role she was placed in black-face, wore a prosthetic nose, wore a "kinky" wig to look like Nina. Forget about the girls in this video....forget about their opinions and Think about the little girls of today who look like Nina. Little bitty girls with Nina's dark skin completion, hair texture and wide noses. what kind of message does this send to them? when a society already told them that they're not beautiful and they're not good enough or pretty enough. How do you tell this younger generation that they're dark skin, kinky hair, and wide noses, in order to be on screen, they have to be"replicated" on a lighter skinned woman. That is the world we live in. please don't speak about things you have no idea about.

Beyoncé is a prime example of why sometimes it is a terrible idea. They just put dark makeup on a light black person, she looked unnatural, and they could've gotten a darker model. But as for the Nina actress, I have no opinion on it.

I want to hug you right now because I said something similar before an got so much hate...

you WANT to live in this world you describe, but most of us live in reality. The sooner you realize the world doesn't live up to your expectations, the better.

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

+Seun Sofowora In Nina's time, her skincolor was NOT trivial. It was a huge source of her pain and poetry. By erasing that part of her struggle they are LITERALLY erasing Nina's struggle, her legacy and her identity.

Get your head out of the clouds brother

+Jimin Trash yeah lol

I totally agree!

I don't think it's black enough necessarily, it's about in the black community there's strife between light and dark skin women and the politics behind that difference in skin tone. Nina's whole image was a dark skinned black woman struggling against a world that refused to see her beauty or humanity, through her music and strength in civil rights. Getting a light-skinned woman to put on dark makeup to play her feeds into the notion that dark skinned women aren't good enough, even if the biopic is about a dark skinned woman.

+ToxicTuga lets see you say the same thing when asano tadanobu plays george washington in white face cause hey he's an actor right?.....

thats not even the point. Hollywood basically refuses to cast black and darker skinned people. they even have a white guy playing micheal jackson now

+ToxicTuga Great job, you missed the point.

+toxicblood4 Say it again for the people in the back!!!! With their logical all Asian people are Chinese. All Hispanics are Mexican.

It’s not about her background it’s about her skin color he sang about the struggles she faces as a dark skinned woman and they couldn’t even have a dark skinned woman play her.

no their "asian logic" is that Scarlet Johansen is "asian enough" and their "hispanic logic" is that Cameron Diaz is "latina enough." O and Zoe Saldana is the "token black chick."

***** coolio

+M I G I lol right

You know what "I don't know" means?

Junior Ferreira coolio

+ariella fudge the lady that was crying actually has lighter/skin the same tone as Zoe Saldana, Zoe is afro-Caribbean/Hispanic and it is extremely ignorant of people to get annoyed because is playing a 'black' role when she is in fact black, being Hispanic does not mean you cannot also be black there are countless black people in all Hispanic countries.

Damn, me too.

+MsMadKim But isn't Zoe black?

Nope, Puerto Rican, and Dominican.

ChaCha Cat Both of those countries have mixed races, she's not 100% black, but she's certainly not white and neither doing "black face" when she's supporting make up that makes her look more like the person she's portraying. She probably faced the same struggles black people faced during her life, I would be terrible offended, if after I finally made it in Hollywood people start telling me that I'm not "black enough"

Woohoo! Lifeisamazing But this is a story of a black woman. She is respectively not black, but Hispanic. Yes, the may face to same struggles, but it's supposed it's supposed to resemble Nina's Past. Why can't someone like her play her part. I'm generally confused as to why.

no she said she was not african american, and she is not. she claim proudly to ba afro-latino.

Probably not

no not really.

Except no

Lol no it's not "too much" people just are finally able to voice when they feel unconfortable/disrespected without fear of severe backlash. You should try it

+Leen Ya Incorrect. If you can't relate, how can you judge those that are offended?

was you here last month?

gr8 b8 m8

***** thats what i try to talk about in a sarcastic way...

+sleezeproductions what's wrong with minorities being too empowered?

everything, they start to feel entitled and blame everyone else for their problems

How has Nina ruined it for you, the actress is not called Nina.

No, Zoe and the producers were the ones who ruined it. Nina herself was awesome.

Not upset about it btw.. I just think it's a strange choice

I looooove Lupita!

AGirlCalled NAN Did u read what i wrote? Or you're just ignorantly ranting. Skin color was important to Nina Simone! She was UNAPOLOGETICALLY BLACK and proud of it! Zoe Saldana has rejected her black heritage! Who are you to tell people of color what to be offended by and sensitive to? What sort of White privilege has infected you to dare tell us how we feel? Please if you do not wish to dialogue and understand us then keep away. Good day!

AGirlCalled NAN Just a typical example of White Privilege. Who on Earth do you think you are? Keep quite and listen and learn.

also i dont see you up in arms about jamie foxx playing ray charles. did you know he also wore "blackface" based on how you perceive blackface to be and he also wore prosthetics. you are just a little person picking on Saldana to inflate your own ego.

AGirlCalled NAN Shut up! Hush and listen. Jamie Foxx did not do Blackface, so stop being an idiot spreading false information. Jamie Foxx is already a dark skinned brother! And he identifies as a proud Black man. Zoe Saldana has categorically denounced her Blackness - she isn't Black and Proud! Meanwhile Nina Simone was and suffered prejudice for it. How dare you idiotically open your mouth to speak on other people's issues. SHUT UP, LISTEN AND UNDERSTAND! That's what we need more of, idiots like you to shut up and listen for once! Who the hell do you think you are to tell Black people what to be hurt by and the parameters by which it should qualify. SHUT UP!

hahaha

Michelle Obama Thank you first lady haha!!

+NarendraTheComic SMH. You have no idea what the video was about and that is just so sad. Only a white person with white privileged would say somethone like that. If you were Asian/latino/gay/disabled/ ypu would have huge issue with someone doing a biopic of an important historical figure in your community/culture and doing such a poor job of it.

J. Hypolite Well, you clearly made the wrong assumption, because uhhh... I'm Indian! I am a minority, and I understand what this is about. They are making a bio-pic of a strong black woman, and they have cast a great black actress to play her. And of course this has nothing to do with white privilege you pretentious person

The problem is that people remain ignorant to the history of colorism

*won't

isn't Zoe black? she looks very similar but she's not dark enough how do you think it makes her feel that her community isn't behind her, and before you ask I'm a dark skinned person

isn't Zoe black? she looks very similar but she's not dark enough how do you think it makes her feel that her community isn't behind her, and before you ask I'm a dark skinned person

+NotThatGuy I have nothing against her as an actress. I really enjoy her actually. But casting her as Nina wasn't appropriate. A lot of Nina's struggles were because she was Dark so why wouldn't the person portraying her be dark skin? It was obviously an important part of story if they had to put Zoe in blackface and make her darker. And I'm not saying Zoe isn't "dark enough " to be black. Anyone who's black is dark enough to be black and struggle in their own right. But she wasn't dark enough to accurately portray Nina's struggle.

+NotThatGuy I have nothing against her as an actress. I really enjoy her actually. But casting her as Nina wasn't appropriate. A lot of Nina's struggles were because she was Dark so why wouldn't the person portraying her be dark skin? It was obviously an important part of story if they had to put Zoe in blackface and make her darker. And I'm not saying Zoe isn't "dark enough " to be black. Anyone who's black is dark enough to be black and struggle in their own right. But she wasn't dark enough to accurately portray Nina's struggle.

+katelynn767 I honestly wouldn't care. As long as they are good actresses. I think what has bothered me with this video is that here is an incredible black actress who is getting hate thrown at her because she's basically not black enough to play the part. I bet these would be the same people that if they picked a lesser known actress with darker skin they would of complained that they should of picked someone more prominent or better actress.

RheaP JoY I just answered honestly..... pretty sure Taissa did too....

+katelynn767 I would think it is weird in an big production, because i know plenty more suitable people would have auditioned. Especially since black bone structure is so different. But if its low budget, just take the best actor you can get. The acting and emotions are more important. But lets say a darker white person (eg. arab) would play Marilyn in an big production. They would most likely wear a light foundation. I wouldn't think twice about it. Why not? They are acting, not playing themselves.

+katelynn767 No! I could care less who plays a role. As long as the actor/actress is representing the message and character of the person they are playing accurately and respectively, then I have no issue with it. If makeup is used to help them accurately portray the role then kuddos to them for spending the extra money and making more effort to better represent the message of the film. An issue only rises when these things are used in a manner to mock or discredit the person being portrayed. Did the white community ever make an uproar over the movie White Chicks? No, we knew it was a joke and shouldn't be taken seriously. For this movie however, it is a serious film trying to portray the hardships suffered and commending her for her brave actions and historical influence. Instead of, for example, crying over the "blackface" in the film, maybe acknowledge and thank Saldana for respectively playing her role in the movie. At the same time we have to understand this is a business. Yes, there is a race issue in Hollywood, but we should be thanking the casting in this case for actually finding an actress that is well mannered, skilled, respectable, and still falls into the same race as the portrayed character while also having the actin history and name to sell tickets to the movie. There's a lot more to casting than meets the eye. It isn't as easy as checking off a bunch of required fields for the role. In the end, it is about making money, so we should be thanking the casting for making the extra effort to actually find a well known and not busy actress that also falls into most categories as the role being played. So, to get back to your question, no. Most "whites" would not care at all who would be playing a role. We could have the darkest actor/actress on the planet playing the palest character in the world if they could accurately portray the character and if the studio wants to put in extra thousands of dollars for professional makeup to help the actor/actress to better look the part and better portray the character in a respectable manner then I thank them for going through that extra barrier.

So why is it A OK when a black actor plays a white roll but the reverse is "racist"?

I guess cause there are amazing dark skinned actresses like Viola Davis or Lupita

I understand where you are coming from and if it were some other story of a black person making it, I would be with you but Nina's story was about her afro-features, her fight was to be accepted with her board nose, full lips and dark skin to use an actor who will wipe away all those features when the camera is off shakes me to a level I can't describe. They could have found an actor with those features.

AGirlCalled NAN im talking about the makeup it looks like clay like blackface did

AGirlCalled NAN you were assuming i was calling them racist?

+Emma Tolkin About coloured people being racist towards light skinned coloured people? yeah probably

+Dustin Brimhall no, Nina's image was connected very strongly to her dark skin. To put a light skin woman in dark makeup to play such a pioneer of dark skinned beauty and talent kind of misses the point, don't cha think?

Poodlekisses you are literally discriminating against a black women because she isnt black enough for a role. Shouldnt it matter more about her acting, her singing, and how she actually portrays the character? not the skin tone of nina or the actress?