Black fishing is defined as when “white public figures… do everything in their power to appear black” including altering their skin color and hair according to Wanda Thompson, the journalist who coined the term back in 2019. It is derived from the word “catfishing” which details when someone pretends to be someone they’re not on the Internet, usually for attention and admiration. Black fishing has been a prevalent problem in Hollywood with famous white entertainers using black features to appeal to the public and profit off of the “aesthetic” and later, discard it when it doesn’t fit their image. This behavior is detrimental to actual black people who don’t get viewed the same way with their natural features.
However, black fishing isn’t a recent development but rather an evolution from the more sinister practice of blackface. Blackface started in Hollywood with performers donning shoe polish and painting exaggerated features to ridicule black people. It peaked in popularity around the time that black slaves were fighting for their emancipation and were propaganda to justify Jim Crow laws and segregation. If you don’t view black people as fully human, it’s easier to hate and commit violence against them. Actually, Thomas D. Rice, often known as the “Father of Minstrelsy”, created the character of Jim Crow, a lazy and incompetent disabled black slave which reinforced in white people’s minds that they were sub-human.
The recent practice of black fishing is steeped in centuries of racism and discrimination, no matter how innocent the “aesthetic” of it all is.
Nowadays, black fishing through extreme tanning and appropriating traditionally black hairstyles and speech styles are the new way to maintain power over African Americans. Celebrities such as Ariana Grande and Kim Kardashian are accused of “switching their race” when they feel like it. Luckily, living in the days of the Internet has allowed the public to hold these celebrities accountable for their mistakes with trends on apps such as Tiktok and Twitter. So hopefully with time, celebrities and influencers can realize that the “aesthetic” is hurting more than it is helping.
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