In my opinion, I dont think the brooch that Princess Michael wore was rascist. I mean it was christmas, and who she wore was one of the three wise men. I think it got blown out of proportion, but then everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

motherofbulldogs:

duchessofostergotlands:

I wasn’t aware of it being one of the three wise men. It was a blackamoor. Anyway, I did some research into blackamoor jewellery at the time and this article was great for helping me to understand how problematic it is: https://www.nyu.edu/about/news-publications/news/2015/july/awam-amkpa-on-blackamoors-at-la-pietra.html

You also have to add in her half assed apology (I’m sorry if it caused offence rather than if she caused offence) and her repeated racist incidents in the past. There’s no reason to give her any slack given the fact this was the latest in a long line of examples of her being a racist. 

Sorry, it wasn’t a blackamoor brooch. Kuriozgirl is correct. 

Lainey made an assumption that it was a blackamoor brooch simply because the character was black/of African origin, and it took off like wildfire in the gossip press because Princess Pushy/Princess Michael has said racist things in the past. Lainey did no research – she just assumed. Blackamoor works show the African character in positions of servitude or ridicule (see the article cited above); however, the brooch Princess Michael wore did no such thing. It was simply of an African man dressed in gold and jewels: a king.

It’s simply ignorant of art and religious history and tradition to simply point fingers accusing Princess Michael of racism with the Balthazar brooch. (That doesn’t necessarily mean she isn’t racist; it just means the Balthazar brooch itself is not inherently racist as are blackamoor works.) 

Balthazar, as one of the three Magi, has historically always been portrayed as an African – just as the other two Magi have been historically been portrayed as Arabian and Mediterranean. This is a representation of the historical Christian diaspora and the traditional regional powers of the early Christian era. Recall that this is a religion born of the eastern Mediterranean, with connections to the surrounding areas. 

A better representation of historical racism in European Christianity would surely be portraying Jesus as a blond or fair-skinned European. Or the fact that in Spain they still portray Balthazar using blackface instead of actors of African descent.