Khloe Kardashian faced backlash from online critics who said the Halloween costume she wore was blackfishing.
The 39-year-old reality star revealed her outfit resembling a Bratz doll in several social media posts.
For the costume, she donned a yellow minidress over a long-sleeved white shirt. She completed the look with a matching hat, a purse with “BRATZ” on it, and knee-high chunky high-heel black boots.
Khloe also wore extra long bleach blonde hair, which flowed past her back and to the top of her boots.
In an Instagram carousel post, she stood at different angles to pose for unique photos in her costume.
The Kardashians star shared the IG post (below) with her 312 million followers, leading to criticism for blackfishing.
Khloe wasn’t the only Kardashian to receive criticism this Halloween, as both her sisters got criticized for online shares. With Kim, it was due to her showing her extensive Halloween decor, which featured spooky hooded figures, skulls, bones, and other macabre features.
In Kourtney’s instance, online commenters called her out for a Freaky Friday costume they felt was mocking or copying her sister Kim, who wore an identical outfit while pregnant in 2013.
Online critics blasted Khloe for ‘blackfishing’
With over 7,500 comments on Khloe’s recent IG post, many were critical regarding claims she was blackfishing with her Bratz costume.
“how is this not blackfishing,” one commenter asked.
“The blackfishing is so severely real it’s sad,” another wrote.
“Wait Khloe I didn’t know you and jesy Nelson was sisters lemme find out,” another said, suggesting the resemblance between them.
The Urban Dictionary defines blackfishing as “When a white person has purposely made themselves appear black on the internet.”
Another part of the definition indicates it’s “commonly perpetrated by females of European descent (white)” via the use of artificial tanning and makeup to appear to have “some type of Black African ancestry.”
“I love u khlo but this ain’t it! U didn’t have to become darker to be a bratz doll,” a commenter wrote with a facepalm emoji.
“Girl who the hell is this, you’re not even recognizable,” a popular comment said.
“y’all love doing blackface,” another commenter wrote.
In another series of images, Khloe posed alongside her sister, Kim Kardashian, and friends Olivia Pierson and Natalie Halcro.
Each woman wore a different color minidress with matching hats and purses, with Kim and Natalie in thigh-high white socks for their costumes.
Khloe was accused of blackfishing before
This isn’t the first instance of Khloe getting slammed by online critics for changes to her appearance that many considered blackfishing.
The Kardashians star received backlash when she shared a photo online in 2020 (below) with an ultra-dark tan.
“‘Get off my backkk’ if you know then you know,” she wrote in the IG post’s caption.
In 2019, she received criticism after posting photos of herself wearing cornrows during a Turks and Caicos vacation.
“When white women wear black hairstyles, it’s a slap in the face to black women,” a HuffPost article by Zeba Blay said.
“There’s history and context tied to these styles that cannot be ignored, a historical legacy forever linked to the ongoing cultural remnants of slavery and institutional racism,” Blay also wrote.
The author also indicated it’s “a novelty, a parody, a subtle form of blackface” when white people wear black hairstyles.
While Khloe has faced criticism for each instance where she was accused of blackfishing, she’s left all of the posts active on her Instagram, seeming unbothered by the critics.
The Kardashians airs on Thursdays on Hulu.