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The Shang-Chi star addresses complaints over her use of African American Vernacular English in her work and says she intends no disrespect to anyone
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Awkwafina made a brief return to Twitter for the first time in two years to address recurring complaints over her use of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) in her work (the so-called “blaccent”) and says she intends no disrespect to anyone without quite apologizing for her use of AAVE. She then announced that she is again leaving Twitter.
The main point that the Marvel Cinematic Universe actor (whose birth name is Nora Lum) wanted to get across was that she never intended to mock Black people though the use of AAVE throughout most of her career, including her early comedic raps as well as her film roles in Ocean’s 8 and Crazy Rich Asians. She noted, “I must emphasize: to mock, belittle or to be unkind in any way possible at the expense of others is: Simply. Not. My. Nature. It never has, and it never was.”
Ever since her early days on YouTube (with her breakout rap video, “My Vag”), Awkwafina has received criticism that she unfairly adopts AAVE to stand out as a performer. As she has grown in popularity and began to gain dramatic acting roles, the criticism has only grown louder. There was an increased level of negative attention when she gave an interview in 2017 where she explained, “I’ve walked out of auditions where the casting director all of a sudden changed her mind and asked for accents. I refuse to do accents.” The “refuse to do accents” line has haunted her on social media in the years since, since the specific criticism people have of her is that she uses an AAVE accent, so it angered people to see her refuse to do an Asian accent while apparently having no problem with doing an AAVE accent.
When she was cast as one of the leads in an MCU superhero blockbuster, the criticisms were renewed and she gave her first real acknowledgments of the critiques in September 2021 where she noted, “Um, you know, I’m open to the conversation. I think it, you know, it’s really something that is a little bit multi-faceted and layered.”
So now it appears as though she wants to have at least one side of that conversation. In her post, which was a collection of four images containing her full statement, she opens by acknowledging that the Black community has been “disproportionately affected by institutionalized policies and law enforcement policies” while “having historically and routinely seen their culture stolen, exploited and appropriated by the *dominant* culture for monetary gain, without acknowledgment nor respect for where those roots come from, the pioneers of its beginnings and the artists that perfected and mastered the craft.”
She then added, ““As a non-black POC, I stand by the fact that I will always listen and work tirelessly to understand the history and context of AAVE, what is deemed appropriate or backwards towards the progress of ANY and EVERY marginalized group” before noting that she never intended to mock anyone or show any disrespect through her use of AAVE. She closed by stating, “I think as a group, Asian Americans are still trying to figure out what that journey means for them, what is correct and where they don’t belong. And though I’m still learning and doing that personal work, I know for sure that I want to spend the rest of my career doing nothing but lifting our communities. We do the first by failing, learning, acknowledging, hearing and empathizing and I will continue tirelessly to do just that.”
The post was not particularly well received overall by social media, especially the lack of an apology while apparently acknowledging why non-Black people using AAVE is problematic.
a 6 page long notes app “apology” to say yes i know about the history of AAVE, yes I understand the implications of nonblack ppl using it, yes as a poc I understand the importance of not perpetuating stereotypes — no❤️ i will not say sorry bc that’s not my nature xx pic.twitter.com/esKX8fVgj6
— nimo🐠 (@_moonimo_) February 5, 2022
All these words and not one apology.
Awkwafina could have just said: “You were right. I did use a blaccent to make a name for myself and that was wrong. I wholeheartedly apologize, and I’ll do better from now on.” https://t.co/3CDsw962B7
— Britni Danielle (@BritniDWrites) February 5, 2022
The actor then announced that she would be taking another break from Twitter, “Well, I’ll see you in a few years, Twitter – per my therapist. To my fans, thank you for continuing to love and support someone who wishes they could be a better person for you. I apologize if I ever fell short, in anything I did. You’re in my heart always.”
Source: Twitter
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