On Thursday, Rep. Mike Lawler of New York awkwardly tried to moonwalk away from controversy surrounding an unearthed photo of the Republican donning blackface as a college student in 2006.
Lawler is part of a group of New York Republicans who hold seats in districts won by Joe Biden in 2020. He’s currently in a tough re-election campaign against former Rep. Mondaire Jones, a Democrat who is Black.
If you buy a red jacket and a white glove, we’ll all know who you’re impersonating. No need to go all Al Jolson with it.
The New York Times published a story Thursday that included a photo of Lawler at age 20 impersonating Michael Jackson in the “Thriller” video, with a face full of brown makeup to boot. It bears saying that blackface in any scenario is egregious, but Lawler feeling the urge to wear blackface to impersonate Michael Jackson — a man who, for a lot of his life, had a skin tone similar to Lawler’s — seems … telling.
Quick tip for the white folks reading this: Don’t be like Lawler — or former Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat whose term was marked by an eerily similar controversy. If you buy a red jacket and a white glove, we’ll all know who you’re impersonating. No need to go all Al Jolson with it.
In the most recent MJ minstrelsy, Lawler’s rationale couldn’t have been more awkward. During an interview with CNN, it started about as well as a “sorry for doing a racism” response could go:
I can’t change what happened 18 years ago, but I certainly — with wisdom and age — understand that that is not something I would do today, and certainly understand why people would be upset or offended by it. And for that I’m sorry.
And then it went completely off the rails:
But for me, there was no ill intent. There was no effort to malign or make fun of or disparage Black Americans. It was really an effort to pay homage to somebody who was a musical idol for me. I’ve always loved Michael Jackson’s music and his dance moves and his ability to entertain. Anyone who knows me knows that, and people who come visit my D.C. office can see today a Andy Warhol painting of Michael Jackson hanging in my office. So this was really not what I think could truly be construed as blackface, but I certainly understand why people would be offended by it and for that I’m sorry.
This incident can be construed as blackface, though — because it is blackface. This isn’t difficult. Wearing Blackness as a costume is demeaning and inherently racist.
Lawler’s excuse was so mealy-mouthed, CNN host Kaitlan Collins asked him to clarify whether he thinks it’s OK for a white person to wear blackface in any scenario.
“No, of course not,” Lawler said.
But then he doubled down on the obfuscation by suggesting that what he had done wasn’t truly blackface:
But I think there is a stark difference between dressing up for Halloween and paying homage to somebody you like and respect, versus dressing up in blackface to demean and dehumanize Black people, which is what minstrel shows and blackface historically was about. And that’s obviously not what I was doing there.
Lawler is trying to make a distinction where there isn’t one. Blackface fundamentally is, and always has been, about white people finding it entertaining to pretend to be Black, no matter whether Black people found it demeaning. Intent has nothing to do with whether something qualifies as minstrelsy, despite various attempts to deploy this as an excuse.
Perhaps Lawler does think his little get-up and face full of bronzer was an “homage” to Michael Jackson. Even if he is that dumb, it was still blackface that — like all minstrelsy — prioritized white joy at Black people’s expense.
Ja’han Jones is an MS NOW opinion blogger. He previously wrote The ReidOut Blog.