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Zendaya Coleman Insulted Over Faux Locs at The Oscars

Avatar • Feb 24, 2015

Actress Zendaya Coleman stunned at the Oscars on Sunday, walking the red carpet in a white, floor-length gown and faux locs. Coleman unmistakably made her mark in the increasing trend of actresses rocking natural doโ€™s on the red carpet and it was embraced with open arms by everyone exceptโ€ฆ E!โ€˜s Fashion Police co-host Giuilana Rancic. According to the Fashion Police Oscars special Monday night co-host, Coleman โ€œsmells like patchouli oils.โ€ฆand weed.โ€

I promise, you canโ€™t make this stuff up.

While Rancic and her other co-hosts laughed it off, social media and online publications went into an uproar over the distastefully ignorant comment, and Giuilana got a well-deserved eโ€‘dragging.

Here are some of the top responses via Twitter:

Coleman herself released a well articulated, thoughtful, and educational response to Rancicโ€™s rude commentary via social media:

Image courtesy of NecoleBitchie.com In true foot-in-mouth form, Rancic has backpeddled and offered a cookie-cutter apology via Twitter (that suggests she hadnโ€™t even read Zendayaโ€™s response):

 

Yet another case of racism guised as good-natured rib tickling commentary.

What do you think about Giuliana Rancicโ€™s comments on Zendaya Colemanโ€™s hair?

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About Christina Patrice

Born, raised, and living in Los Angeles, Christina is BGLH's resident transitioning expert and product junkie. In addition to loving all things hair, she is a fitness novice and advocate of wearing sandals year-round. For more information on transitioning, natural hair, and her own hair journey, visit maneobjective.com. Or, if you like pictures follow Christina on Instagram @maneobjective.

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Mom_of_IV
Mom_of_IV
6 years ago

Zendaya is an awesome role model for young girls/women today. She carries herself like a young lady and looked beautiful on the red carpet.

Dee
Dee
6 years ago

I realize that what Joan Rivers said about people on โ€œFashion Policeโ€ was a thousand times more offensive than what Guiliana said.

However, the stereotype that all folks with locs smoke weed is old and tired.

Tabatha
Tabatha
6 years ago
Reply to  Dee

True, but Joan Rivers we have always known to be that way. Juliana not so much. Not to mention Joan Rivers could take it as much as she gave it. So if she is going to say something like that then donโ€™t back peddle when people yell at you.

Cami
Cami
6 years ago
Reply to  Tabatha

She back peddled to keep her jobs and standing at E.

Lovely
Lovely
6 years ago
Reply to  Dee

Joan Rivers Fashion Police commentary always came off as a comedian just trying to get a laugh while Gulianaโ€™s have always come across as mean spirited and catty. Believe me, I watch the show and she just doesnโ€™t strike me as a nice person.

Kezzy
Kezzy
6 years ago

You tell โ€™em girl ????????

Tabatha
Tabatha
6 years ago

Her back peddle is worse then the statement. I know plenty of โ€œBohemian Girlsโ€ that donโ€™t smell of weed and patchouli. Thatโ€™s like someone saying that she is a rude hefifer because she looks liks a stereyotypical anorexic and is Hangry all the time. Juliana needs to take several seats and spin. Thatโ€™s not right at all. I wish that the co-host would have said something to her even if they were on air. Correct her on world wide television. And Zendaya, nicely said Girl!

Youngin girl
Youngin girl
6 years ago

I watched the oscars too but I glanced every now and then just because my mom left it on that channel and I was already glued to it. I didnโ€™t expect this to come but If people have nothing nice to say, Why bother creating a problem? Itโ€™s February. This is not the month to do this. Why canโ€™t a woman be stylish with her own hair? No one is saying anything wrong with your hair. They have been wearing their own for centuries. Sheโ€™s 18, a year before me and sheโ€™s expressing herself. Let her express herself the way… Read more »

Lovelyevenstar
Lovelyevenstar
6 years ago

She looks absolutely beautiful and I love her response. I agree ignorant comments such as that should not go unchecked. And thanks to this article and her response I am prompted to find out more about her.

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
6 years ago

Its very difficult for me to be offended by a woman that resembles ETโ€™s love child and a famine survivor. Nonetheless I expect nothing less of white folk to praise black hairstyles/attributes on whites while demeaning such natural characteristics on non-whites. So over it.
#IrrelevantWhiteOpinions

Cami
Cami
6 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

PREACH!! Wish I could give you 10,000 thumbs up!

Funmi
Funmi
6 years ago

A few points/questionsโ€ฆ 1. I donโ€™t remember anyone saying kylies locs were stylish. In fact it seems to me that zendaya got far more compliments (and kylie got more insults). 2. I love fashion police โ€” although, its not the same since Joan passed. And if yourโ€™e a fan like myself, youโ€™ll know that insults are thrown around like its nothing. In fact I think worse has been said. I remember once Joan was talking about a celeb kid, I think it was North West, and she said some really horrible stuff. Stuff that you should never say about a… Read more »

AdinaKay
AdinaKay
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

Is that a serious question, or are you trolling? How are they not natural? Relaxers are a chemical alteration that cannot be reversed. Locs are simply allowing your hair to do what it wants to naturally, which is get tangled. Contrary to popular belief, you can remove locs without cutting them. You canโ€™t do that with relaxed hair. Itโ€™s not the same thing. Locs are still hair in itโ€™s natural state. Locs are what happens when you donโ€™t detangle you hair. manicured locs are simply guiding the hair to tangle in a specific way, unlike freeform locs that are allowed to… Read more »

Funmi
Funmi
6 years ago
Reply to  AdinaKay

It was a serious question Ok so now that youโ€™ve answered that question, can you then explain to me why locs are considered a black thing? Cause if locs are formed by just letting your hair do its thing then everyones hair would turn into dreadlocks if they just left it alone, regardless of race. So if this is the case then why is Guilianas comment considered racist if every race can grow their hair into locs? The two groups that immediately spring to mind when I think of dreadlocks are Rastafarians and hippies โ€” Zendaya is neither so iโ€™m… Read more »

AdinaKay
AdinaKay
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

Dreadlocks have been around since the beginning of humanity. If you donโ€™t comb your hair, dreadlocks will eventually form. This is true of all races. But manicured locs? Itโ€™s considered a Black thing because while all hair will loc eventually, other races cannot achieve the same results we do with manicured locs without having to do a lot more. I finger coiled my hair and it locโ€™d within six months. This is because the coily nature of my hair makes it far easier for my hair to tangle on its own. People with straight or wavy hair textures cannot achieve manicured locs simply… Read more »

Camille
Camille
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

Black hair naturally locks, even curly hair does. Thatโ€™s why itโ€™s a natural black hairstyle.

Lockedwoman
Lockedwoman
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

I am sure others reading this think you might be acting dull, but letโ€™s work on this step by step. 1. I canโ€™t comment. 2. Absolutely, there is comedy that is built on insult and even on racial tension that is hilarious. I donโ€™t know if Fashion Police counts. But, by all means, some comments must expect massive backlash, and comedians judge the backlash vs. joke delivery/acceptance ratio as part of their job. Sometimes they win, most times they win and lose and decide if the loss is acceptable. 3. You canโ€™t be serious. Yes, natural refers to not using relaxer… Read more »

Lockedwoman
Lockedwoman
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

BUTโ€ฆ THAT woman, the superbly beautiful woman in those pictures? Not a natural thing about that hair. I am glad she stood up for herself and fought the stereotype, but she didnโ€™t grow that hair, that was hours and a whole lot of Indian women of turning her long, but not that long, hair into that hairstyle. I am on year 5 of dreadlocks from long natural hair, and letโ€™s just say.. I call bull-patties.

Really?!
Really?!
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

You are clearly a white troll or a black self-hater to make such outlandish comments!!! The property of black people?! When you take something that is a cultural creation of one group and then appropriate to the mainstream without giving credit to the group that created it, that is a problem. And Jamaicans are BLACK, silly rabbit so it is still a black cultural creation! Duh!!!!! And natural hair is โ€œwaking up like thisโ€ either!!! We style our hair in its natural texture without altering it with chemicals.โ€ฆ geeshโ€ฆthereโ€™s always an Aunt Jemima or Uncle Tom among us.โ€ฆ.SMH

Tosan
Tosan
6 years ago
Reply to  Funmi

Honestly Funmi i cannot believe what i just read. Your comment is loaded with ignorance. I am Nigerian. I understand that dreads/locs are natural. I cannot even being to comment on the other things you said. Please pick up a book and educate yourself. Do not spend the whole day on facebook, instagram and twitter doing nothing. Look into certain topics and learn! Most importantly, learn about other cultures. Good day to you.

Ella
Ella
6 years ago

I took the comment to be an insult to hippies. It never entered my mind when I heard GRโ€™s words that she was being racist. I donโ€™t know what she meant, but you have to know that you just canโ€™t say anything. You have to think before you speak. Even if she was talking about hippies or whoever, itโ€™s still an uncool comment.

lee
lee
6 years ago

Poor Zendaya, it shouldnโ€™t have even gotten this far. Itโ€™s just hair. Guiliana was wrong bc she had word vomit, sheโ€™s not a racist though. It shouldnโ€™t have been made into this big mess. She looks gorgeous, donโ€™t even know why anything negative was said about her. Either way, everyone got a little emotional and things got carried awayโ€ฆwelcome to Hollywood.

Tasha
Tasha
6 years ago

Zendaya looks great. The backpedaling from that comment was a failure. It doesnโ€™t matter if it was about race, calling out a stereotype is just as bad. Smh. Glad I donโ€™t watch that show.

Jacky
Jacky
6 years ago

Zendaya looks stunning and I love the fact that sheโ€™s embracing and paying homage to her black roots and her black relatives. I donโ€™t want to say anything rude about Giuliana but what she said was the most offensive ignorant comment about black hair that Iโ€™ve ever heard( Iโ€™m not joking, Iโ€™m still in shock ) and it didnโ€™t make it any better that her co-host laughed when she said it. I understand Zendayaโ€™s anger over it.

DCW
DCW
6 years ago
Reply to  Jacky

Agreed!โ€ฆand I liked Zendayaโ€™s retort (very classy and mature, unlike her offender)โ€ฆshe held her own and I couldnโ€™t have said it better myself.

lecia p
lecia p
6 years ago

Im so over the blatant racism that they wrap in the form of a joke. this on heels of Sean Pennโ€™s comments about the oscar-winning Mexican director โ€œwho gave this bastard his green card โ€œ. white people really feel that they have the right to say whatever they want and as long as they claim itโ€™s a joke thats supposed to make it OK. and they think just because they have a Mexican in this case that suddenly it gives them a pass?just because youโ€™re friends with this particular Mexican person does not mean you get to throw out racist slurs about… Read more »

Youngin girl
Youngin girl
6 years ago
Reply to  lecia p

Yeah, I like your comment. I can feel your anger behind this. I am wondering where this came from. I think, Iโ€™m guessing, itโ€™s because they are a majority and that they have privileges so it constructs them to say what they want without no repercussions. I read that Carter Godwin Woodrow said that we are the most docile and tractable race so she emphasizes that. I clicked on a link on a video and the topic was saying that caucasianโ€™s have โ€œno empathyโ€. This was a few years ago. This country was built on racism. People have been making… Read more »

Jojo
Jojo
6 years ago

I think if she was white depending on the hairstyle, the same could be said. To ME patchouli and weed are more associated with the hippie lifestyle and not necessarily rastas. I could be wrong though. Everyone have their personal likes and dislikes and the basis of their show is to make a witty, bordering on insulting, remark about starsโ€™ outfits. If you donโ€™t have thick skin,u donโ€™ need to be in the public eye. Worse have been said about others. There are not many of us who do not make stereotypical jokes. That doesnโ€™t make right but its quite… Read more »

athorn
athorn
6 years ago

How interesting that Zendaya was called out by the black community for not being โ€œblack enoughโ€ to play Aaliyah, but now that a white person has discriminated against her sheโ€™s a daughter of Zion. Lol Black people need to look at themselves too. Why do mixed race and light skinned people always have to prove their blackness before the community will rally around them? Now she can represent us as a black woman SMH

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
5 years ago
Reply to  athorn

I agree with you on the fact that many black folk are just being damn hypocrites and are now considering her an โ€œhonoraryโ€ black woman. For those of us with sense we are looking at the bigger picture. The goal should not be to defend Zendaya as a black woman (since she aint black) but to call out typical white BS that glorifies ethnic attributes on whites but condemns ethnic attributes on non-whites. If they are ripping into the mixed girl then only lord knows this ET looking chick wouldโ€™ve said something even more disparaging about a black woman with… Read more »

Rachel
Rachel
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

What do you mean she isnโ€™t black?

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
5 years ago
Reply to  Rachel

Sheโ€™s half Caucasian. Therefore she is mixed race not black. Hopefully that answers your question ๐Ÿ˜‰

bsbfankaren
bsbfankaren
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

Which would indeed make her Black and White.โ€ฆIrish to be exact. While is not Black via both her parents, she is still Black. This need to characterize someoneโ€™s race is what got people talking about Zendaya in the first place, a year ago!

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
5 years ago
Reply to  bsbfankaren

โ€œWhile is not Black via both her parents, she is still Blackโ€
How is she โ€œstillโ€ black but not white? Complete illogic. Thereโ€™s no need to โ€œcharacterizeโ€ race. Just apply basic common sense. And no what had people talking about her is the fact that they were trying to pass off a non-black woman as black in a biopic. That was the problem.

amiishu
amiishu
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

I guess people being considered โ€œuncleanโ€ and โ€œimpureโ€ and BLACK with even ONE drop of blood in their veins for decades in the US means nothing, and all of us mixed girls are not black. I guess Iโ€™m actually Mulatto, native, mex, et c. Keep turning your backs on us mixed girls, PEASE. When you are all alone, with people judging you and being prejudiced against you for being black AND a woman, remember that your lighter skinned neighbor is not your sister and that you truly are alone. And what about mixed people who LOOK black but are half white?… Read more »

Ingรฉnue Coquette
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

fyi, โ€œmixed raceโ€ is not its own ethnicity. She is both black and white. They are not mutually exclusive.

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
5 years ago

Meh. Semantics. You get the point.

Ingรฉnue Coquette
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

I know Iโ€™m late on the reply, but i mean itโ€™s not just semantics. You said the complete opposite thing โ€” that sheโ€™s not black. She IS black. And white.

Jojo
Jojo
5 years ago
Reply to  Rachel

So if she has kids by a black man, what race is the kid? Well, would the kid be half black and half mulatto even though the child could be darker complected? At what point does a mulattoโ€™s descendants become black. Who establishes the criteria? LMAO. If I see Zendaya in the street, I would describe her as a young, black lady. Hell, she doesnโ€™t even look mulatto to me. LMAO. People really need to stop.

Ingรฉnue Coquette
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

The kid would be of both african and irish descent. Your complexion has nothing to do with your ethnicity.

Jojo
Jojo
5 years ago

Unfortunately thatโ€™s not a box you can check on governmental forms. Complexion and features have everything to do with race.

Ingรฉnue Coquette
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

โ€ฆ you can check more than one box, typically. iโ€™m not sure what youโ€™re talking about.

Jojo
Jojo
5 years ago

People need to understand the difference between race and ethinicity before acting like experts! No one was talking of ethnicity. A person born of Japanese parents may be ethincally more American than Japanese, especially when you talking about 3rd and 4th generations. African Americans will never be considered ethincally West Africans unless they lived in one of the countries and adopted the culture. Race = physical appearance, features, complexion, hair texture. Ethnicity = cultural norms, customs and to some extent physical appearance. Zendaya obviously appears to be ethnically African American.

Ingรฉnue Coquette
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

And if she was albino? Ethnicity refers to cultural factors, including nationality, regional culture, ANCESTRY, and language. Her ancestors are African and Irish. She is ethnically African American, but she is also ethnically Irish American.

Jojo
Jojo
5 years ago
Reply to  Rachel

People need to understand the difference between race and ethinicity before acting like experts!

Tasha
Tasha
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

Just because sheโ€™s half doesnโ€™t mean she isnโ€™t black. Her dad is full black and her mom is white.

Cathy0001
Cathy0001
5 years ago
Reply to  athorn

She wasnโ€™t called out for โ€œnot being black enoughโ€. The person who cast her as Aaliyah was called out for not casting a girl that looked at least a little like Aaliyah. As for that movie, whatโ€™s this world coming to when a girl that looks like Missy Elliot is considered too dark and too heavy to be cast as Missy Elliot? SMH.

OXxo
OXxo
6 years ago

While Funmiโ€™s comments are โ€œoutlandishโ€ they come from a place of complete ignorance.

bsbfankaren
bsbfankaren
5 years ago

I think what she was trying to do was push the envelope ala Joan Rivers, and simply fell flat on her face!

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
5 years ago

Sheโ€™s black AND white. Not black. Sheโ€™s mulatto. End of story. Thereโ€™s nothing to debate here. Itโ€™s what it is.

Tasha
Tasha
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

Sure.

Tasha
Tasha
5 years ago
Reply to  Ms. Vee

Sure.

xyzebra
xyzebra
5 years ago

I for one am very proud of Zendaya. Not only did she keep it moving when folks said she wasnโ€™t black enough to play Aaliyah, she carried herself with grace on the red carpet proudly showing locs in a glamorous light, and she responded to a catty, racial remark with dignity and knowledge of her culture. This is a young lady to be considered a role model!

Ms. Vee
Ms. Vee
5 years ago

Are you upset? Sorry but not sorry. The one drop rule means nothing and itโ€™s racist to tell someone to deny half their ancestry. JS.

Rose
Rose
6 years ago

Giuilana Rancic is a racist buffoon.

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