This ‘Riverdale’ Actress Was Accused Of Posting A ‘Racist’ Halloween Costume On Twitter

Twitter / @lilireinhart

The Internet is torn about a new tweet from Riverdale actress Lili Reinhart. While some call it “racially insensitive”, others are criticizing people for making it about race at all — and the whole thing brings into question what blackface really is in regards to Halloween.

The tweet, which she has since deleted, was that of a demon in all black clothes and black body paint. “Found my Halloween costume!!” the actress wrote. “Inspired by the color of my soul.”

And, of course, because this is the Internet, chaos ensued. As people began tweeting at Reinhart for the offensive outfit, she deleted her tweet and apologized:

But still the conversation continues: should Lili Reinhart have had to apologize? Was her costume actually a portrayal of blackface?

Some people argued that yes, darkening her skin in any way was problematic.

https://twitter.com/LYDlAINSKI/status/922103744875114496

Others, on the other hand, saw nothing wrong with Reinhart’s costume.

https://twitter.com/ravishhme/status/922053725597859841

https://twitter.com/ddadelijahh/status/922115791805444097

In fact, some people believed that calling it “blackface” was problematic to begin with, because what does that say about how we view POC?

https://twitter.com/AudnyHood/status/922785689342705664

https://twitter.com/BronzedBeauT/status/922161431289696257

I’m sure this is going to be a pretty big topic this October. While costumes that appropriate culture have been a hot topic debate the past few years, what does and does not count as blackface is sure to be one of the conversations going on this year. What do you think? Thought Catalog Logo Mark

Callie is a writer, editor, and publisher at Thought Catalog. Her debut book, ‘The Words We Left Behind,’ was released in January 2024.

Keep up with Callie on Instagram, Twitter and calliebyrnes.com

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