Social media never fails to remind black girls who the most disrespected and unprotected group of people is. Whether it be featurism, colorism, texturism, or blatant racism, some form of mysoginoir constantly makes its way to the forefront of mainstream media. Unfortunately, the most recent victim of the Internet's lack of care for black women's feelings is Francesca Amewudah-Rivers.
Francesca Amewudah-Rivers is an extremely talented and extremely beautiful black British actress, writer, and composer. She has made her debut in London's West End cultural district starring alongside Tom Holland in “Romeo & Juliet.” The Jamie Lloyd company will run the play from May to August. The company's choice to cast Amewudah-Rivers as the female lead, Juliet, has caused an insane amount of backlash.
The internet has been insanely cruel to the entertainer, with many taking to Twitter, now X, to share their disproval. The racial abuse has gotten so bad that the Jamie Lloyd company has had to speak out against the racism and show their support for the actress. The comments on the official social media pages for the play are also off.
Francesca Amewudah-Rivers has shown her ability to handle large roles. She is a graduate of Oxford University with a degree in music. She has performed well in other on-stage and television roles such as “Family Tree.” However, many people have decided that they care less about talent than they do the made-up images they have in their minds of made-up characters.
Unfortunately, this is a tale as old as time. Too often, black women with prominent Afrocentric features are cruelly stripped of not only their femininity but their humanity. In the United States, Juliet will be played by Rachel Zegler, another beautiful actress. People on social media wasted no time comparing the two, praising Zegler while referring to Amewudah-Rivers as masculine and unfit for the role.
Aside from racial abuse, large media outlets have refused to give Amewudah-Rivers the basic human decency to even refer to her by her name. For an entertainer who has landed such a large role, the bare minimum would be to amplify her name and give her the credit that she deserves. This is especially true for the media outlets that claim to be in support of her. Instead, they have chosen to dim her light, by referring to her only in relation to white male star Tom Holland.
Singer, songwriter, and actress Halle Bailey faced similar backlash after being cast as Ariel in Disney's live-action adaptation of “The Little Mermaid.” Time and time again, when black women are cast as fictitious female leads, they are ridiculed. The issue of their hair, their features, and most of all their skin tone is centered at the forefront of discussion. Instead, we should focus on the many talents that allowed them to be cast in the first place.
Unfortunately, this is not only true when black women are cast in the roles that they are highly qualified for, but in any social context where mainstream media decides that black women should not be allowed to take up space. This was summed up perfectly when FKA Twigs spoke up about the racism she faced while dating Robert Pattinson. “He was their white prince charming and I think [the media] considered that he should definitely be with somebody white and blonde and not me,” FKA Twigs famously said.
Francesca Amewudah-Rivers is a shining example of Black girl magic. Her ability to entertain and captivate an audience while portraying a character is the reason why she was cast as one of the most prominent female leads of all time. This should be the focus of our discussions about her.
