In The Community
Dear J Balvin, We’re Trying to Enjoy Your New Album Pero…
This story has been updated since its original post on September 27, 2021, to reflect the removal of Balvin’s video.
J Balvin just released a new album and a couple of videos alongside it. I watched the video for Perra and immediately regretted it. It opens up to a scene of a Black woman in a maid uniform complaining and cleaning, then around 1:11, we are treated to a scene of Balvin walking Black people on leashes like dogs. Shocked is an understatement.
To more accurately describe it, I felt a multitude of things at the same time; shock, disgust, horror, shame. It was very clear that the “dogs” and “animals” in the video were all darker-skinned people with most of the “lower class” characters also cast with Black people, while the lighter-skinned people were characters like the “Profe” in the opening scene and others.
Apparently, the broader community had many of these same reactions as Balvin’s video was quietly removed on Sunday, October 18th from his YouTube channel. Neither YouTube, Balvin, or Tokischa have commented on the removal, but as laid out below, we can assume it had everything to do with the disturbing and highly offensive nature of the video.
Sadly, this is not the first time Balvin has expressed colorism and anti-Black sentiments. He has quite a record of demonstrating that he is very much in tune with the benefits of his white privilege in his home country of Colombia which also has the 2nd largest population of Afro-descendants in Latin America, second only to Brazil.
But what else has Balvin done? Read on…
The “Tego Calderon isn’t Latino” incident
In an interview, he was asked about how he got started as a reggaeton artist. He mentioned that it wasn’t until he knew that Daddy Yankee was actually white and not Black that he started dreaming about it. He stated that Daddy Yankee was a Latino like himself, implying that Tego’s Blackness precluded him from also being Latino.
Rihanna is ‘just a girl to have fun with’
He played fuck, marry and kill with a Brazilian interviewer, where he got Rihanna as an option. He said he chose fuck for her because she wasn’t “a good woman to marry” and only good for fooling around with. People had things to say.
j balvin really said Rihanna \u201cisn\u2019t a good woman to marry, just fool around\u201d KILLS me bc 1) that says A LOT about nb latinxs views on black women (Latina or not) & what makes him think that Rihanna would even look at his sweaty lookin ass I justpic.twitter.com/HAv2jNOGlD— \ud83d\udc9b\ud83c\udf1a\ud83d\udc9b (@\ud83d\udc9b\ud83c\udf1a\ud83d\udc9b) 1523662643
The All Lives Matter, I mean Black (from the United States) Lives Matter stance
He then cluelessly used the hashtag #EveryLivesMatter, in addition to the equally off-the-mark #LatinoLivesMatterToo hashtag in response to the growing outrage over police brutality and the murder of George Floyd. But because the utter foolishness of those hashtags wasn’t enough, he included a video of himself dancing with a Black woman.
Public pressure finally did its job and Balvin ultimately apologized stating in part, “I appreciate that it is my responsibility as a leader in the Latino community to educate myself of the plight of Black citizens in America – to learn about their struggles and the ongoing, systemic racism they face each day; and more importantly, to learn how I can be a better ally and help change the system through my voice and my action.”
Clearly, Balvin forgot about Black Colombians and Afro-Latinos throughout Latina America, and since then, he has most definitely forgotten about his pledge to educate himself when he decided to dress up Black women as dogs and put leashes on them.
Be peaceful, Colombia.
When protests in Colombia arose, J Balvin once again showed his privilege and his ignorance and .stated that Colombians should remain peaceful in the protests and stop the “nonsense civil war.” Many of the demonstrators were young and from marginalized communities, and took to the streets to protest structural inequality, poverty, and lack of education, among many other social issues that the pandemic made dramatically worse. Meanwhile, Balvin flippantly called for love and peace without taking a moment to understand the fundamental challenges many in his country were facing.
When artists like J Balvin intentionally ignore the realities of racism, colorism, and anti-Blackness in the Latinx community, but even worse, participate in so much of it himself, we have to ask ourselves, when does the Latinx community begin to hold these artists accountable for perpetuating so much harm that so many are trying to prevent and undo?
We must acknowledge that Balvin has recently done work to advocate for the adoption of COVID vaccines, using his power and platform by performing in concerts, addressing it on social media, and publicly sharing his own experience with the virus in various media appearances.
He has certainly been a part of the growing crowd of Latinx artists who have put the community and diversity of Latino and Latinx musical genres on the global musical radar. He’s also brought attention to mental health issues, which is a difficult topic to tackle in the Latinx community, especially amongst Latino men.
@luzcollective Get in amigos we’re going to therapy to heal generational trauma❤️. #mentalhealthmatters #machismo #latinxcommunity #fyp
Here’s our take on Mental Health issues within the Latinx community
Despite that, the Latinx community has the ability to walk and chew gum at the same time. We can give credit where credit is due and also call out our musical faves when they are clearly showing up in the wrong way. Balvin must not only address and apologize for his anti-Blackness as he has done in the past, but he has to do the work to rid that of his system. COVID isn’t the only virus in the room; racism is too and Balvin has only recovered from one of them.
In Balvin’s own words in response to his Black Lives Matter fiasco on June 1, 2020, he says, “After taking time to speak to those close with me, I am educating myself on the deep significance and horrifying history that is the root of the #blacklivesmatter movement.”
Bro, how much time do you need?
As we’re nearing the end of 2020 we’re highlighting Luz Collective’s most read stories of the year made popular by you, the reader! We’ve been able to keep these stories going because not only did you read, but you also gave to the Luz Collective Writers’ Room which keeps this important work going.
You’ve told us what you like and what you want to see more of and 2021 will be a year of uplifting more Latina stories and bringing them to the forefront. Cheers to you!
Selena: The Series Fails To Tell A Nuanced Story by Rosa Parra
The most hyped-up show to come out this year, Selena: The Story, fell flat to many viewers who grew up listening to the Tejano pop star. Take a look at this article examining the show’s faults by Rosa Parra, who takes a closer look at everything from the corny lines that fail to inspire, to the critics of interference by Selena’s family in the production of the story.
The Cult of Pink by Myriam Gurba
Female genital shaming is something you might not be familiar with – something our columnist Myriam explains in this introspective piece about the shame women face in not having ideal looking genitals. Not having a pink pussy is something most women are surprised and shamed by, but we’re here to call out the BS surrounding this narrative while dispelling the insecurity around your (maybe) brown ass pussy.
Black Lives Matter Protest Shines Light On Racism In A Small West Texas Town by Sarah Vasquez
Alpine is a small Texas town that you might not know of, but it serves to provide a very important context on the existence of a divided racial identity in the midst of the Black Lives Matter movement. Author, Sarah Vasquez dives deep into her experience as a biracial woman growing up in the small West Texas town, the microaggressions she experienced in her upbringing, and how speaking at the locally-organized BLM rally helped her understand the racism that exists in Alpine – and how people can combat this in their own communities through sharing their own lived experiences.
Confronting Anti-Blackness in the Latinx Community by Marielys Cepeda
After this year of advocacy in regards to BLM, many members of the Latinx community are taking time to confront anti-Blackness in themselves and their families. Author Marielys Cepeda describes anti-Blackness as the elephant in the room for many Latinx people where colorism has long-dictated harmful behaviors against members of our communities in addition to Black Americans.
