Nicki Minaj (Marie Claire)
Nicki Minaj believes Hollywood has an issue with celebrating white beauty over Black women’s. In a new interview, the rapper also noted the role Black women play in the aftermath of deadly police shootings.
Speaking with Marie Claire for their November issue, the 33-year-old star opened up about the entertainment business’ double standard between white and Black women.
“When Kim Kardashian’s naked picture came out, [Sharon Osbourne] praised it,” Minaj said. “And my fans attacked her for being such a hypocrite. So it wasn’t trashy and raunchy when a white woman did it, but it was when a Black woman did it? It’s quite pathetic and sad, but that is my reality, and I’ve gotten accustomed to just shutting it down.”
Minaj’s statement highlighted a problem that reaches across the music, TV and film industries. The unflinching praise for white stars goes beyond a nude photo. It also spreads to the appropriation of Black culture. Kim’s sisters Kylie and Khloe Kardashian each found themselves embroiled in scandals where they took credit for African-American hairstyles.
Nicki Minaj (Marie Claire)
But Tinseltown comparisons were not the only subject of the interview. Amid the protests that erupted over numerous police shooting deaths of unarmed Black men, Minaj addressed a different part of the story. The Trinidadian-born MC recognized an aspect of police brutality that many outlets miss: the wives, mothers and girlfriends left behind.
“We tend to not remember the Black women who are mourning these men and who are thinking, ‘Oh, my God, what am I going to tell my child now about where his father is,’ and the struggle it is for Black women to then move on after they lose their husband or their boyfriend … The strong women in these inner cities often go unnoticed … no one really ever puts a hand out to them.”
While the public regularly erupts in hashtags and rallies against the unjust killings of Black men, support for Black women is not usually in the forefront of those expressions. However, one entertainer thought to look out for the children. Actress Issa Rae launched a successful GoFundMe campaign for Alton Sterling’s kids earlier this year. Ultimately, Rae collected $714,000 for a scholarship fund.
