‘Brownface’ Parody of ‘Roma’ actress Yalitza Aparicio Puts Televisa Under Fire
At only 25-years-old, Yalitza Aparicio can confidently say she’s not where she thought she would be in life. Coming from a humble background, the Mexican-native stumbled onto an acting career and is now known as the face of the critically acclaimed film, Roma.
At the 91st Academy Awards, on February 24, the Oscars nominee looked stunning in a teal, rhinestone-adorned dress, and although she didn’t win for Best Actress, she was a fierce competitor nonetheless. But it seems that Televisa decided to take this unique opportunity (an indigenous mujer being celebrated and in the running for a prestigious award) to promote the second season of La Parodia with of course, a parody.
After Aparicio walked across the red carpet, Televisa’s Yeka Rosales posted an image and video of herself in “brownface.” Rosales also put on a prosthetic nose, a long black wig, and a teal blue dress — closely resembling Aparicio’s red carpet look.
Now, we all grew up sitting next to our parents watching hispano networks, like Televisa, put comedic spins on celebrities and trending pop culture. But given Yalitza’s indigenous background and the public’s mixed responses, the parody was racist and completely unnecessary.
“We do not believe that the production of La Parodia engages in this type of practice,” Televisa spokesman Alejandro Olmos wrote in an email to the Associated Press. The Mexican media company did go on to delete a video tweet of Rosales imitating Aparicio, but the TV personality defended her actions.
“I do not discriminate,” she wrote. “I interpret people of all skin colors and races and ages that exist in the world.”
We hope the Roma star continues to venture into the world of acting (when she’s not busy teaching la próxima generación!) and doesn’t let these sort of comments get her down.
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