Recently, the Hong Kong television series Barrack O’Karma 1968 has received criticism after the series’ actress Franchesca Wong wore brownface to portray a Filipino domestic worker.
In a behind-the-scenes video uploaded by a colleague which has since been deleted, Wong was seen applying brown make-up on her legs. When asked what she was doing, the star responded, saying that she was “transforming to another person, to Louisa.”
The said video sparked outrage on the Internet where a petition was started on Change.org demanding TVB for formal apologies and for “a change in the TV show to prevent racist content that perpetuates stereotypes.”
Twitter users, on the other hand, also slammed the show for being “insensitive, ignorant, and racist.”
HK TV drama "Barrack O'Karma" features an actor in brownface playing a Filipino domestic worker. Chinese-lang local media praise the actor's "dedication" & accent, says she looks & sounds "just like a maid" but is still "beautiful." Racism runs deep in HK.https://t.co/KVPLLhuTtp
— Mary Hui (@maryhui) April 13, 2022
Welcome to Hong Kong, where the city’s own equality watchdog can’t bring itself to say “just don’t do blackface ever” https://t.co/7jYouByzFL pic.twitter.com/4LEAD3LL6x
— Jerome Taylor (@JeromeTaylor) April 16, 2022
#brownface highlights the HK entertainment industry’s lack of public accountability #entertainmentintegrityhttps://t.co/6GDzKD6afh pic.twitter.com/QV2J2cCj5c
— Crisel Consunji (@criselconsunji) April 18, 2022
This is all wrong – brown face, the horrible fake accent, the "witch" character.
You can't hire FDW to play the role because domestic workers are legally not allowed to engage in other work but there's A LOT of Filipinos in performing arts in HK you could have casted. https://t.co/H8JxvQxrbw
— Kathleen Magramo (@kathmaemagramo) April 13, 2022
Oh looks like the actor who put on brownface, Franchesca Wong, is loving the praise she's getting from fans. Here's one saying "Looks like a maid indeed," to which she responds "Hire me hire me😂." Guess she finds her racism pretty funny. pic.twitter.com/IGFSXhhmXj
— Mary Hui (@maryhui) April 13, 2022
Following the uproar, Wong took to Instagram to apologize over the brownface controversy. “I sincerely apologize to all who have been negatively affected in any way by the 7th chapter ‘Jei Jei’ of the Barrack O’Karma 1968 drama series, and my role in it,” she wrote.
“I have learned through this incident that professionally trying my best to analyze, interpret and act a given role to fulfill the story line is only part of the job,” said Wong.
Wong then went on to explain that it was not her intention to “disrespect or racially discriminate [against] any ethnic group.” She added: “I am truly sorry that my insensitivities have offended and hurt. I am committed more than ever to using my acting for the good of the community.”
In an earlier report by Coconuts, a spokesperson for Hong Kong broadcaster TVB explained that it was “never our intention to show disrespect or to discriminate [against] any nationality in any of our program[s].” TVB has also removed the episode that featured the brownface incident, as per Malay Mail.
Barrack O’Karma 1968 is a reboot of the 2019 supernatural romantic television series Barrack O’Karma, which follows the story of star-crossed lovers.
This isn’t the first time that the TVB had their actors darken their skin to portray a person of color. In a tweet by award-winning journalist Vivienne Chow, she pointed out that another actor, Elvira Kong, also wore blackface to portray a clumsy domestic helper named Maria in the late ’80s variety show, Enjoy Yourself Tonight.
…not the first time for TVB. Elvina Kong became a household name with her role as domestic helper Maria in EYT sketch…decades ago… pic.twitter.com/lLXGWdENPz
— Vivienne Chow (@VivienneChow) April 13, 2022
Brownface and blackface are phenomena in which a white or light-skinned person darkens their skin in attempts to portray a person of color. Both practices are considered racist acts as they mock and depict people of color as “unworthy of human dignity.”
Here in the Philippines, some shows also went under fire for practicing blackface. In 2011, Barbie Forteza was criticized for wearing blackface in the show Nita Negrita. Maymay Entranta also faced backlash for doing the same thing in her role in one of Maalala Mo Kaya’s episodes in 2019. Ella Cruz went under fire over blackfishing (the act of depicting Black people as stereotypes and portraying Black culture as a product) in 2021’s film Gluta.
Last month, Miss Universe Philippines 2022 Laguna City bet Shaira Aliyah Diaz was also called out by pageant content creator The Sovereign for blackfishing.
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