Gwyneth Paltrow does not want to be Black. Nor is she trying to earn her “Black card”. Okay sistas, I get that you are fed up with women from other cultures stealing our “swag” and then profiting from it. I get that we do not always get the credit we deserve for being trend setters in fashion beauty, and other markets. I get it! I do. But not every White woman who connects with our culture is trying to earn a Black card. Case in point- Gwenyth Paltrow. Gwenyth can’t catch a break. She catches heat from some sistas and some brothas because of her friendship with super star Beyonce. She catches heat because her husband- Chris Martin- is friends with Jay-Z. They are all said to be very close friends. Now she has earned a new reason to be on White Girls we can’t stand list for aligning herself with our culture a little too much.

Recently I saw a video she was interviewed by NY Times bestselling author Steve Stout and somehow the questioning touched on how she loved Rap music and went on to give the opinion that Vogue magazine should not have waited so long to put African American women on the cover. Citing that we are as qualified as the prettiest, most stylish White girls and this should have happened a long time ago. Damn right Gwen! I’m with you on that. She went to explain that as a Jewish woman she does feel some similarities to Black women. Jokingly saying how bushy her hair can get and how “moisture can ruin a good blow out”. I definitely feel her on that! Noticed how I said jokingly, well, some people might have took it as her mocking Black women because as I read some of the comments on the site and I noticed that I was one of the few Black women who was digging Gwenyth. Yeah, I dig Gwenyth.

There were comments like-

I don’t need to hear Casper The Friendly Ghost talkin’ about Black Folk hair I wanna smack her with my purse!

This chick thinks she has a black card and I’m not talking about American Express.

Some of these comments may be true for some White celebrities. I can admit that some might play the race game in order to gain acceptance or cool points from the Black community for profit or popularity. One or the other. But, I don’t get that impression from Gwyenth. She seems… Pretty damn genuine. Gwyneth Paltrow does not want to be Black. Gwyneth Paltrow is a sun child. She is a love all, hippie type chick.

See what these commentors fail to realize is that their is a difference between respecting, adoring and have respect for a culture that is different from yours. Or even feeling a connection to or having a relationship with said culture. As opposed to obsessing over it and attempting to mimic that culture or race of people for personal gain. You see not every one who respects or relates to a culture outside of their own is”jocking” that culture’s style or secretly wishes they were a member of that culture. These concepts are not one in the same and are used as though they are interchangeable too often.

It is unfortunate that we don’t see the difference. African American especially. Yes, it is true that our style is often copied and even capitalized off of. I am in no way blind to this and it pisses me off too that we don’t get the credit we deserve from mainstream media for being iconic in so many different facets. However, it would be insane to think that every White girl that listens to Jay-Z is feening to be a Black girl. That would be like me saying that because I dig Katy Perry my deepest wish is that I was a 16 year old Blonde, blue eyed girl name Becky. It all sounds asinine to me and it should to you as well.

You see, humans, well, developed humans are not that simple. I know I am not. So, it is unfair of me to cast that type of simplistic judgement on Gwyneth Paltrow. Why? Because I would not want someone to do it to me. We have to think deeper and bigger than just race and color. Some things transcend race.

This interview was meant to shed light on how music is universal and how much hip-hop and urban culture touches everyone and how we are all more connected than we sometimes want to admit. We should all get over the rest.

But don’t get upset Black people. I’m positive that there are some Whites who think that Gwen wants to be Black as well. They probably watched the interview and thought to themselves “Here she goes again.”