In this day and age, the Internet's eye for racism has never been keener. This is helpful when real, insidious examples are publicly identified and called out. It creates problems, however, when hyper-sensitive 'social justice warriors' decry it where it most likely doesn't exist. Riverdale star Lili Reinhart unwittingly put herself at the center of this debate when she tweeted a photo of a Halloween costume idea - a demonic creature dressed in all-black and adorned with pitch black body paint.
The blackface accusations came flying in almost immediately, leading Reinhart to hastily delete the photo and issue a sincere apology, insisting that she meant no harm and didn't initially see how the photo could be perceived as 'racially insensitive.' As a heated debate raged on, though, it appeared that even most People of Color on Twitter agreed that the costume was in no way offensive, with some appalled that others would liken the image of an evil creature to a Black person.
Just like Dove's recent ad fiasco, it could be argued that this tweet was a little too risky. In this case, however, people seem more convinced that it was a mass overreaction. Scroll down to judge for yourself, and let us know what conclusion you come to in the comments.
Riverdale actress Lili Reinhart is at the center of a new race debate after posting a Halloween tweet
The photo depicted a pitch black-painted demon, drawing accusations of Reinhart promoting blackface
Following an uproar by certain users, Reinhart promptly deleted the tweet and issued an apology
Many people, however, argue that she had nothing to apologize for, instead blaming the accusers
