Just a few weeks after J Balvin courted controversy for winning Afro-Latino Artist of the Year at the African Entertainment Awards despite not being Afro-Latino, actress Awkwafina is similarly trending after being nominated at the NAACP Image Awards.
The NAACP (short for the National Association for the Advancement of People of Color) announced nominations for the Image Awards this week, which will be presented next month. One particular category came under fire on social media as the board included Awkwafina as a nominee in Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance for her role in Raya and the Last Dragon.
While the NAACP does not exclusively nominate Black entertainers, a large number of Twitter users were outraged to see Awkwafina earn a nod at the upcoming ceremony, especially given her alleged use of a “blaccent” for years. Awkwafina has been called out on multiple occasions for allegedly appropriating African-American culture.
Awkwafina is a New York-born comedian and actress. The 33-year-old actress reacted to her nomination, saying, “Extremely honored to be nominated at the @naacp image awards, alongside so many people I love, appreciate and respect. Thank you @naacp for all that you do and have done.”
She has not responded to the backlash that her nomination faced on Twitter. Check out some reactions below.