There were plenty of roles where it was like - we're looking for the young black girl and she's going to be the sidekick best friend who only talks in hash-tags and says YOLO every three seconds, and through affirmative action helps to get her best friend into school. Whereas if there was a role for an Iranian person, for example, they wouldn't exactly put me in that category - I'd be the ambiguous person. It would be interesting to go out for things where I was called for the role of the 'ambiguous' person. I never fully experienced it, because we were very careful even just in auditioning, that I would only audition for something that I would be proud to be a part of. Yara on identifying as black: "When I was little, I didn't feel the pressure, because again it was something fun that I loved to do, but I think growing up I became more aware of it.
And all of that starts with having pride in who you are." Especially on social media, which is usually very negative.
When you scroll through and see people embracing their natural curls or their skin and being confident in it and feeling that it's beautiful - that is something that's really cool to see. I notice on social media little hash-tags, like when we have #BlackOutDay or #MelaninMonday or #BlackGirlmagic - however small a hash-tag may be, they mean a lot and are beautiful to see.
I think it has done that already a little bit. Zendaya on the African American community connecting with their roots: "I think it would bring a lot of pride. Check out what they had to say in their interviews below: The two young actresses shared the cover of the new issue with Aja Naomi King, Serayah, Kat Graham and Kiersey Clemons. That same year, she dabbled in the music industry a bit more.Check out all the Zendaya and Yara Shahidi's individual covers for Kode magazine! "I really appreciate that they took the time to make super detailed and took time with the hair, because obviously the hair was so important." " The doll looks exactly like my look! Literally down to my pinkie ring," she told Vogue after the doll was released. Later that year, Mattel created a Barbie that matched her red-carpet look to honor the young star for being a role model. To me, locs are a symbol of strength and beauty. My wearing my hair in locs on an Oscar red carpet was to showcase them in a positive light, to remind people of color that our hair is good enough. "There is a fine line between what is funny and what is disrespectful," part of the Instagram post read. Rancic said her dreadlocks must have smelled of "patchouli" and "weed," and the teen responded with a widely applauded Instagram post.
Zendaya wore her hair in dreadlocks to the 2015 Oscars, and the celebrity faced negative comments from E! News reporter Giuliana Rancic. Christopher Polk/Getty Images Kevin Winter/Getty Images The toy company made a doll based on her Oscars look. I want her to be normal with an extraordinary life."Īt the 2015 Oscars, Zendaya defended her locs against negative comments, and Mattel created a Barbie in her likeness to honor her activism. But I also want her to be socially awkward, not a cool kid. I want her to be able to do everything that a guy can do. There are other things that a girl can be," Zendaya told Vogue in 2017. "I wanted to make sure that she wasn't good at singing or acting or dancing. She also had specific conditions for how her character was presented on the show.
It's hard as a young person of a different ethnicity or background to look at the TV and not see anyone who looks like you. "One thing that is really important to me is diversity on the channel. "The only way I was going to come back to the Disney Channel was if I was in a position of more power," she told Cosmopolitan in 2016. Undercover." Disney ChannelĪfter finishing her run on "Shake It Up," Zendaya returned to Disney Channel in 2015 on "K.C.