This is a petition asking Banijay Group, owners of television show ‘Your Face Sounds Familiar’, to put a stop to blackface performances and cultural appropriation on all franchises of their show.

From the very start until current day the show has been a platform for predominantly white celebrities to mock and make fun of black artists. The list of celebrities that are guilty of this is endless and without action this list will only continue to grow.

‘Your Face Sounds Familiar’ is an interactive reality television franchise series where celebrity contestants impersonate singers. Often these impersonations include changing your skin colour, hairstyle and texture, facial features and voice.

To this very day, celebrities are being transformed into black artists with the intent to shock television audiences. As a result, the imitator who does not experience oppression is able to temporarily play a character for “entertainment purposes” and be celebrated instead of experiencing any of the daily discriminations faced by other cultures.

For a more detailed look into blackface, it’s history and why it’s harmful I want to direct you to a Vox article from 2014.

In the hope to create a more inclusive international media landscape, protect black artists and black audiences, this petition asks Banijay Group to put an immediate stop to these performances.