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Blackface

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Blackface: A cultural history of a racist art form

With the recent controversy over Megyn Kelly's remarks in which she questioned why wearing blackface on Halloween was offensive, "Sunday Morning" contributor and WCBS anchor Maurice DuBois looks at the long and complex history of white (and even black) performers painting their faces black. For more than 100 years, minstrel shows were a popular form of entertainment on stage and film, reducing an entire race of people to stereotypes. DuBois speaks with Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Margo Jefferson, and with Eric Lott, cultural historian and professor at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, about the complicated history of a racist theatrical form.

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Margo Jefferson on the history of black performers wearing blackface

As a theatrical art form that began in the 19th century, minstrel shows featured white performers wearing blackface to evoke stereotypes. But African-American performers have also worn blackface when taking the stage. In this web exclusive, Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Margo Jefferson talks with "Sunday Morning" contributor and WCBS anchor Maurice DuBois about why black performers felt the need to don a black mask.

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