Mexican fashion magazine ¡Hola! is being accused of whitewashing Yalitza Aparicio’s complexion in the cover of their issue preceding Oscar night. Not only that, but they also appeared to have slimmed her waist and arms, and in the photo, Yalitza looks taller than she appears to be in real life.
Yalitza appears smiling into the camera, while wearing a long bright-red dress. “I’ve always felt proud of who I am and where I come from,” is one of the quotes the widely-read magazine decided to highlight—ironically.
Here, take a look:
Yalitza Aparicio, espectacular en la portada de ¡HOLA! México antes de los Oscar #HolaOscar https://t.co/geZZakyPWq pic.twitter.com/OozdvSJ28Z
— Revista ¡HOLA! (@hola) February 21, 2019
The backlash on social media was pretty swift:
Oh no! Mexico has whitewashed Yalitza —again pic.twitter.com/2ZiSOkCTaH
— Laura Martínez (@miblogestublog) February 22, 2019
Apparently, Yalitza Aparicio is both pretty and famous enough to be on the cover of one of Mexico’s most well read fashion magazines, @holamexico, but she’s still too brown for their taste so they mega photoshopped her. pic.twitter.com/YrLLkKVrSy
— ??????????? (@Andalalucha) February 21, 2019
Astap making #Yalitza blond! ? pic.twitter.com/mFnXdr53W9
— ? Diego Chanona ? (@DiegoChanona) February 22, 2019
Accustomed to profiling upper-class, usually white, Mexicans (former first lady Angélica Rivera was one of their favorites), ¡Hola! really did mess up with this one. When asked to comment on the concerns expressed by readers, the weekly magazine told BBC Mundo that “at least for now” they would withhold from making a statement.
The 25-year-old teacher-turned Oscar-nominated actress hasn’t directly responded to the racist backlash that she has received since film director Alfonso Cuarón decided to cast her as Cleo in his very intimate film Roma. Still, she is basking in her own glow, as many celebrate her for being a beacon of indigenous representation.
Yalitza Aparicio for Teen Vogue – Young Hollywood portfolio party. pic.twitter.com/ncymNvuFFK
— جوزفين (@JosphineMamdouh) February 17, 2019
Some Mexican-American women expressed pride about how Yalitza’s high-profile role challenged the typical images of light-skinned Latinas in films and TV shows.
yalitza aparicio may not have won, but she has already won more than that award. she won our love, our support, and our faith in her. after all, she has opened the door of hope. hope for all of us people of color, that we have a future in the film industry, and she started it. pic.twitter.com/WVFdaSwbr0
— lei (@wqlverines) February 25, 2019
Astrid Silva, an immigrant rights activist in Las Vegas with Mexican heritage, told Associated Press that many Mexican-Americans see themselves in Aparicio.
“She’s a dark-skinned woman (who) comes from a poor region in Mexico like many of our families,” Silva told the AP. “It’s hard to describe. It’s not just pride we’re feeling,” Silva said. “Yalitza is just…us.”
In the past two months, she also upturned the media’s narrative of indigenous peoples in Mexico by being profiled in the cover of over 12 different magazines—that did not whitewash her. Here are a few of those:
In this photo session, Cuarón paired up again with Yalitza for some images with the US-Mexico border wall as a backdrop.
Above, is a beautiful portrayal of Yalitza for the men’s fashion magazine Bad Hombre.
In addition, Yalitza’s co-stars Marina de Tavira and Jorge Antonio Guerrero also posed for the magazine’s March edition.
Photographer Ricardo Ramos went for a minimalist look in Cream’s magazine cover.
And of course, how can we forget Yalitza’s appearance on the cover of Vogue Mexico.
Which of these is your favorite?
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Emily Corona is a digital intern at Futuro Media. She is a journalist and translator from Mexico City, pursuing a master’s in journalism and Latin American and Caribbean studies at NYU. She tweets from @daminijo.
