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Blacks Want British-Nigerian Cynthia Erivo Tossed From Harriet Tubman Biopic
There is a diaspora war happening on twitter that started with Tevin Campbell, and it could possibly end over Harriet Tubman!
Recently, it was announced that Tony-winning actress Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple) would play an icon in Black American history for the big screen. Harriet Tubman. But, folks are saying Erivo shares vitriol for Blacks who are descendants of slavery, therefore the role should go to someone else.
How did Erivo’s critics conclude this? Well, she’s very close with a Nigerian representing twitter user named Luvvie. And Luvvie recently had old tweets resurface that displayed some disdain towards American Blacks. She made fun of Kwanzaa, calling herself an “elitist African” and condemned HBCU’s — like they were trash!
All of these things and more came to light because Luvvie decided to tweet negatively about Tevin Campbell and a handful of American Black twitter users got tired of her trashing Blackness. The consensus was “Don’t speak for us, since you hate us.”
In return, Luvvie justified her Blackness with a blog, in which Cynthia Erivo unabashedly supported. Do you think this means she’s anti-Black, like her Nigerian sister Luvvie is accused of being?
That wasn’t it either. Cynthia retweeted tweets about Black Americans being JEALOUS of Africans in the US.
Critics of Cynthia Erivo in the role of Harriet feel like she secretly shares vitriol for Black culture, and hides it. But Cynthia DID defend her role in the upcoming film, saying:
“Actors are free to go where they please for their work, but I dare you to do that fully as a Black woman in the U.K. If I see it, I applaud it.” “What was for someone else was never mine in the first place. Please believe that I have turned down roles I know I have no business playing. This role is not one of them….”
“If you met me in the street and hadn’t heard me speak, would you know I was British, or would you simply see a Black woman?”
That statement doesn’t address whether or not Cynthia respects Blackness, descendents of slaves and African-American Culture. Folks are waiting for some answers. What do YOU think of all of this?
Hit the flip to see some of the point folks are making about Cynthia stepping down from this biopic. Are they justified?
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