A South Carolina Sheriff Wore Blackface For Her Bob Marley Halloween Costume And Is Confused Why People Are Upset
Daily Mail- A South Carolina sheriff’s captain was forced to issue an apology after being photographed wearing blackface as part of her Bob Marley Halloween costume. Captain Melanie Thornburg, of the Gaston County Sheriff’s Office, insisted that she never intended to offend anyone, and that she was unaware of the historical significance of wearing blackface. Thornburg, who is white, landed in hot water after a photo surfaced on social media showing the sheriff’s official, who is white, wearing a dreadlocked wig, a T-shirt emblazoned with a marijuana a leaf and the word ‘High,’ and dark paint on her face. The law enforcement official explained in her statement that she was searching for a last-minute idea for a Halloween getup over the weekend, and since she already had the wig and the shirt, she decided to go as the legendary Jamaican reggae singer/songwriter Bob Marley. ‘I didn’t do it out of disrespect,’ Thornburg told the local paper Gaston Gazette.’ And I apologize to anyone who took offense.’
Few things surprise me on the internet anymore. I’ve been doing this blogging thing for almost two years now and in that amount of time I’ve seen my fair amount of weird shit. I’ve become somewhat accustomed to things that might otherwise seem shocking or surprising. Celebrity dick pics, nightmare creatures that crawl outta the ocean, brutal ass kickings, severed limbs, horrific sports injuries, whatever. I’m numb to almost all of it. With that said, people still dressing in blackface and still being caught off guard when people get pissed about it still surprises the hell out of me. The most shocking part is that it still happens at all. You’d think after it happened once in the internet era and went viral as a horrible thing to do that we’d never see somebody make the mistake again. That has not happened. Instead it seems like we see even more blackface now than before. I don’t understand it. There’s really only one rule when it comes to Halloween costumes or dressing up and that is No Blackface. None. Do not smear black paint all over your face and pretend to be Bob Marley or any other black person unless you wanna get dragged through the mud on the interwebs. Literally everything else? Pretty much fair game.