Girls Use Makeup Products To Create ‘Blackface’ At Sephora Store, Face Massive Backlash

A video, showing a group of teenage girls at a US Sephora applying darker makeup shades to their faces in an attempt to pull off a “blackface”, has sparked outrage on social media. The video, which was originally shared on TikTok, shows three teenage girls walking around the store, applying dark foundation shades to their faces with makeup testers while laughing and making inappropriate noises. The incident happened at the Prudential Centre location of the Sephora store in Boston, according to NBC Boston.

As the video opens, a teen with dark brown makeup on her face can be seen standing next to a Sephora employee in the store who is confronting someone who appears to be the group chaperone’s parent. Meanwhile, employees at Sephora can be heard saying in the video that the teens’ makeup application is “incredibly offensive.”

“There’s no way they thought going into SEPHORA AT A MALL would be the perfect place to put on black face like???” a user wrote on X (formally known as Twitter) while sharing the clip. The video has been making the rounds on social media ever since the incident.

Watch the video here:

The original TikTok video has been deleted as per reports, while, other versions of the same have gone viral. Additionally, a statement was released by Sephora, a multinational French retailer of beauty and personal care products, in response to this incident.

“Sephora’s top priority is to create a welcoming and inclusive shopping experience for all. We are extremely disappointed by the behaviour of these shoppers at our Prudential Center location, and as such, they were asked to leave our premises. Under no circumstance is this type of behaviour tolerated at Sephora,” the company stated, as reported by the outlet.

Many people on social media expressed dissatisfaction with the teens’ actions. Several users also proposed that they be banned from Sephora. “I hope Sephora identifies this family and bans them from their stores,” one user wrote. “To do that in public is insane in 2024,” commented another.

Significantly, according to NBC Boston, blackface is a racist custom that originated in American minstrel shows, which were performances from the era after the Civil War in which white actors performed skits and songs that made fun of Black people while wearing makeup on their skin.