The rapper and actress continued, saying in some parts of her statement that “it is a problem we still see today – though some may pass it off as a convoluted mixture of the ‘internet TikTok slang generation'” and that there is a “fine line between offense and pop culture”.
.@awkwafina addresses controversy of her using a ‘blaccent’ in films: pic.twitter.com/razgNiTFke
— Reuters Showbiz (@ReutersShowbiz) September 10, 2021
“But as a non-black POC, I stand that I will always listen and work tirelessly to understand the history and context of AAVE, what is deemed appropriate or backwards toward the progress of ANY and EVERY marginalized group,” the Asian American actress added. “But 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”.
“My immigrant background allowed me to carve an American identity off the movies and tv shows I watched, the children I went to public schools with, and my undying love and respect for hip hop,” Awkwafina (aka Nora Lum) continued in the Twitter post. “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 uplifting our communities. We do this first by failing, learning, acknowledging, hearing and empathizing … and I will continue, tirelessly, to do just that”.
https://twitter.com/awkwafina/status/1489996505100558347
https://twitter.com/awkwafina/status/1490007608102694918
The actress, rapper, and comedian Nora Lum also changed her Twitter bio to say “UNTIL 2024 ALL ACTIVITY IS MONITORED BY MY (amazing) SOCIAL TEAM – HAPPY YEAR OF THE TIGER!”, suggesting that she will be stepping away from the social media platform until at least 2024. She also said that this Twitter hiatus was only for Twitter, not other social media platforms, and that she was stepping away due to advice from her therapist — suggesting that the break from Twitter was necessary for her mental health. The actress’s negative opinion of Twitter was also demonstrated by her follow-up Tweet, in which she called the social media platform an “ingrown toenail”.
