Blake Lively Got Back: LA Face with an Oakland Booty | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Politics and Activism

Blake Lively Got Back: LA Face with an Oakland Booty

A look into the demographics behind why people are getting so upset over a song lyric.

259
Blake Lively Got Back: LA Face with an Oakland Booty

Blake Lively isn't racist because she used a song lyric. Blake Lively isn't 'appropriating black beauty standards. Blake Lively is just a woman who posts on Instagram when she knows she looks baller.

L.A. face with an Oakland booty
A photo posted by Blake Lively (@blakelively) on


Blake Lively, the Gossip Girl star, is a bomb-shell - Check, glad we got that out of the way. She has it all: the face, the boobs, the hair, AND the booty. Just a few years ago, it wasn't cool to be a white girl with a black girl butt. (I know, I was the girl that looked white, but actually had to be black because I had a black girl butt, ask my middle school friends if you don't believe me.)

LA Face

No one would've gotten upset had she only said L.A. Face, because she does in fact have an LA face (she was born in the San Fernando Valley). But one joke about LA is that everyone is a Barbie doll because they are all made of plastic. This may or may not be true, but in Lively's case--she has had a little work done.


This alone is completely fine for she has been born and raised in an environment where your nose is never thin enough, your boobs are never big enough and you always need to lose 5 more pounds. Especially for an actress or model, these critiques are almost impossible to avoid in the LA job market.

Although LA ranks 23rd on WalletHub's most ethnically diverse cities, it is percieved as predominately white or latino city. This could be because the film industry, housed in LA, is incredibly racially whitewashed. However it is widely known that California is home to more Hispanics than whites. So the two races commonly associated with the city are white and hispanic. Blake Lively is indeed Californian by birth and by profession.

...with an Oakland Booty

Oakland was a major city receiving the influx of black people in the Second Great Migration from the 1940s-70s. Oakland absorbed these people into the job markets and culture. Even though the population was still over half white, the city had grown over 31 percentage points in thirty years. During these three decades, the Black Panther Party was founded in Oakland in 1966. This has brought a lot of media attention to the city and identified the city as an African-American haven.

This unfortunately changed the way that the world saw the city and it's affiliation with black people.

"Many white Americans couldn’t get over their first impression of the Black Panthers. Coverage of the 1967 protest introduced them to the party, and the fear of black people exercising their rights in an empowered, intimidating fashion left its mark. To them, the Black Panthers were little more than a group of thugs unified behind militaristic trappings and a leftist political ideology." -- Nick Wing from Huffington Post

According to SFGate.com, the city is losing its black population in droves. Whether this is due to its connection with the party and negative images in the mind's eye of white Americans, is unknown. What is known is that it is a massive population shift of 25% in 10 years. In 2015, the same study from WalletHub proved that Oakland is the 5th most racially diverse city in America with the entire population almost broken into quarters between black, white, hispanic, and asian.

Unfortunately, it seems as if the one drop rule is coming into play, where if the city was once known for being a black haven, it always will be black.

Blake Got Back

Sir Mix-a-Lot himself embraces the Instagram caption, as he should as it is bringing his one-hit wonder back into the spotlight, but he wants white women to accept black women's' beauty standards.

“I think we have to be careful what we wish for as African Americans, because if you say she doesn’t have the right to say that, then how do you expect her at the same time to embrace your beauty?…I think it’s almost a nod of approval, and that was what I wanted. I wanted our idea of beautiful to be accepted.” -- Sir Mix-a-Lot told Sam Reed.

But I bet you didn't notice Khloe Kardashian's SAME post a few months back.

LA face with an Oakland booty 😝😝
A photo posted by Khloé (@khloekardashian) on

Black women have been accepting white beauty standards forever. Black women have spent countless funds in getting their hair straight (many times to look professional), skin bleaching creams and colored contacts -- all of the above to embrace a whiter look.

Let the white women embrace black culture, welcome them with open arms; if someone trips about it, what's the wrong with "looking like a black girl" because black girls are beautiful.

Blending Black and White Beauty Traits

However much we research into our country's racist past, we can always find negative and racist backstories for every situation. We can look up demographics and historical landmarks of black and white culture all over the place. Are they still relevant? Of course. Does that mean Blake Lively is a racist? No. I think it means we should embrace beauty from every culture, every race, and every person; whether it be #BlackGirlMagic #WhiteGirlWitchcraft or #SouthAsianSuperstition. We are all beautiful.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Featured

15 Mind-Bending Riddles

Hopefully they will make you laugh.

185112
 Ilistrated image of the planet and images of questions
StableDiffusion

I've been super busy lately with school work, studying, etc. Besides the fact that I do nothing but AP chemistry and AP economics, I constantly think of stupid questions that are almost impossible to answer. So, maybe you could answer them for me, and if not then we can both wonder what the answers to these 15 questions could be.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

Most Epic Aurora Borealis Photos: October 2024

As if May wasn't enough, a truly spectacular Northern Lights show lit up the sky on Oct. 10, 2024

11408
stunning aurora borealis display over a forest of trees and lake
StableDiffusion

From sea to shining sea, the United States was uniquely positioned for an incredible Aurora Borealis display on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, going into Friday, Oct. 11.

It was the second time this year after an historic geomagnetic storm in May 2024. Those Northern Lights were visible in Europe and North America, just like this latest rendition.

Keep Reading...Show less
 silhouette of a woman on the beach at sunrise
StableDiffusion

Content warning: This article contains descriptions of suicide/suicidal thoughts.

When you are feeling down, please know that there are many reasons to keep living.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

Power of Love Letters

I don't think I say it enough...

455378
Illistrated image of a letter with 2 red hearts
StableDiffusion

To My Loving Boyfriend,

  • Thank you for all that you do for me
  • Thank you for working through disagreements with me
  • Thank you for always supporting me
  • I appreciate you more than words can express
  • You have helped me grow and become a better person
  • I can't wait to see where life takes us next
  • I promise to cherish every moment with you
  • Thank you for being my best friend and confidante
  • I love you and everything you do

To start off, here's something I don't say nearly enough: thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You do so much for me that I can't even put into words how much I appreciate everything you do - and have done - for me over the course of our relationship so far. While every couple has their fair share of tiffs and disagreements, thank you for getting through all of them with me and making us a better couple at the other end. With any argument, we don't just throw in the towel and say we're done, but we work towards a solution that puts us in a greater place each day. Thank you for always working with me and never giving up on us.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

11 Signs You Grew Up In Hauppauge, NY

Because no one ever really leaves.

25051
Map of Hauppauge, New York
Google

Ah, yes, good old Hauppauge. We are that town in the dead center of Long Island that barely anyone knows how to pronounce unless they're from the town itself or live in a nearby area. Hauppauge is home to people of all kinds. We always have new families joining the community but honestly, the majority of the town is filled with people who never leave (high school alumni) and elders who have raised their kids here. Around the town, there are some just some landmarks and places that only the people of Hauppauge will ever understand the importance or even the annoyance of.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments