FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Contact: Kiana M. Sears, President | [email protected] | (480) 442-1222
CALL TO ACTION:
CONDEMN BLACKFACE AND REDFACE AT THE BALLOT BOX
October 23, 2022
MESA, ARIZONA (October 23, 2022) – Multiple photographs appear to show Arizona House of Representatives candidate Mary Ann Mendoza (Legislative District 9) wearing Blackface and Redface. In two images, the woman wears minstrel-like makeup and an apron imprinted with the words “Aunt Jemima”.1
“Mammy’s most successful commercial expression was (and is) Aunt Jemima … During slavery, the mammy caricature was posited as proof that blacks — in this case, black women — were contented, even happy, as slaves.”2
In another photo, the woman is wearing what some interpret as a “Pocahontas” costume.1 Legislative District 9 includes Mesa and Tempe – the ancestral lands of the Akimel O’odham and Pee Posh.3 Wearing a marginalized people’s culture as a costume disqualifies the candidate from representing the constituents they are disrespecting.
Condemning dehumanizing, racialized imagery is a non-partisan issue. Blackface and Redface are always racist and never okay. Regardless of the party affiliation, we can not stand for such behavior, which is why the East Valley NAACP is calling for
Mary Ann Mendoza to confirm or deny that she is the person in any of the photographs; and, if she is, we call for her immediate withdrawal from the Arizona Legislative race.
Voters, we call on you to use the power of your votes to reject Blackface, Redface, and all forms of racism. Find your polling place and volunteer to be a poll protector by visiting naacp.org/vote. #TogetherPowerVote #VotingIsPower
(1) https://coppercourier.com/story/mary-ann-mendoza-blackface/
(2) https://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/mammies/homepage.htm
(3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3m0VXXyPPM
Freedom Fighters, we work to disrupt inequality, dismantle racism, and accelerate change in key areas including criminal justice, health care, education, climate, and the economy. Join us at www.evnaacp.org.