An Instagram star is being accused by some her followers of misrepresenting herself in posts online.
Fans are outraged that Swedish-born influencer Emma Hallberg appears as though she has blacker skin in images posted to her account than her real skin tone.
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She came under fire from some of her fans who felt deceived the teen was "posing as black".
"I honestly thought Emma Hallberg was half-black," a user tweeted last week.
As other admirers realised that she was of European descent, they turned to social media to voice their distaste, sparking discussions over whether it qualifies as black face.
"The girl was clearly posing as black, as she's posted by many black pages etc," said one follower.
"These blackfishing threads just remind me how blackness is viewed as a commodity," another tweeted.
An older photo of Emma shows the social media star with lighter skin, but she was quick to defend the comparison when asked to explain herself.
"I do not see myself as anything else than white," she told Buzzfeed News. "I get a deep tan naturally from the sun."
"The only difference is that I didn't post as many pictures that summer compared to this summer, because I didn't have as many followers then as I do now."
One user shared a screenshot of a conversation which appears to have come from Emma's account.
"Yes I'm white and I've never claimed to be anything else. And by the way, there are no "before" pictures, the pictures that has been spread are just two different pictures taken on two different seasons of the year, on [sic] before summer and one after summer and of course there's a difference in my skin tone because I get very tanned NATURALLY when I've been in the sun!!."
She went on to remark that she does not believe she has been "posing as a coloured person" as the follower had claimed, explaining she was born with naturally curly hair and reiterated her skin gets very easily tanned.
Hallberg added that the comments questioning her authenticity have caused her pain.
"It made me sad that some of my natural features are hurting and upsetting people. It also made me upset and scared that I can't look the way I look naturally, without receiving false accusations, hate, and threats," she said.
"I do not have any specific intentions other than [to] show my passion for makeup and fashion."
Newshub.
