“No Place for Blackface”

Mark Herring is the current and 47th Attorney General of Virginia. He has come under fire in recent days for past mistakes that other prominent members of the Virginia legislation are suffering for as of right now. The controversy surrounding Ralph Northam, the Governor of Virginia, arose from a yearbook photo that surfaced approximately a week ago in which the Governor is shown painted black standing next to a fellow student dressed in Ku Klux Klan garb. In response to this photo, Herring motioned for Northam to resign from his position as a means of righting the wrongs that he caused with such a controversial photo.

Conjecture over Herring’s offense has been floating about the capitol until he himself posted a confession stating that as an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, he dressed as famous rapper Kurtis Blow. In his own words, he “… dressed up and put on wigs and brown make up…” for a party hosted in 1980, an era in which blackface was recognized as racist and hurtful. Herring acknowledges that moment as one that’s shameful and says that it has haunted him for decades. His confession to a black caucus was that much more emotional considering most belonging to that caucus stated that Herring was one who could be depended upon when detrimental issues afflicting the African American community were brought into the office.

Herring accredits his decision to dress as Kurtis Blow to ignorance, and the apology within his statement appeared to be sincere. That’s what the real Kurtis Blow believes anyway. To quote exactly, Blow said, “we all do stupid things when we’re young…” before going onto explain that there are far better ways to honor those whose music or art you enjoy that happen to be of a different race but that “… paint[ing] your face… is the most egregious and disrespectful thing you can do considering what we’ve been through… it’s opening up some deep, historical scars.” But that’s not the only point that Blow wanted to emphasize in his address to the New York Daily News. Among the other points he made was the hypocrisy that should be addressed in terms of Herring’s demand for Ralph Northam’s resignation. Essentially, his statement is that it’s wrong of one man to cast stones on another when they’ve committed the same sin. When asked if Herring should resign, Blow’s response was “I don’t want to be the judge of that… like I said, we all do crazy stupid things, and later we pay for it.” He then goes onto say that he read Herring’s letter, and that Herring was “really apologetic,” deciding that it’s up to Herring’s voters and colleagues to determine what happens next.

In the letter posted on Twitter on the sixth, even Herring himself is unsure whether his service is to continue, and he cannot ask for forgiveness, that it is entirely up to those he hurt to find him worthy of it. The hypocrisy that everyone is heated over between Northam and Herring though is an entirely different subject, and the single thing that has been overlooked is the motivation behind what the two of them did. One did it to look like a rapper he admired, the other dressed as a stereotype next to a Ku Klux Klan member. Black face is not defensible by any means and in no way is it funny or cute, it’s the exact juxtaposition. Herring had no right to call out another man, but he should not be chided for acknowledging that what he did was wrong and what another man did, a little worse, was also wrong.

History is studied so that it’s not repeated, and this instance should be studied and examined so that Herring’s mistakes are not repeated. Moving later into 2019, it is hopeful that the important conversations brought about from these instances will provoke a deeper understanding of the suffering African Americans endured for hundreds of years and why that pain should be respected. It is also hopeful that these conversations will encourage those debating what to dress up as for Halloween or costume parties will weave common sense into their decision.