Blue Ivy Petition Creator Insists Defends 'Joke,' Counter-Petition Created
Blue Ivy Carter, the 2-year-old daughter of singer Beyonce and rap mogul Shawn "Jay Z" Carter, was the subject of a change.org petition recently and now the petition creator is explaining why after receiving backlash.
Jasmine Tolliver, the person who created the petition on change.org that called for Blue Ivy to "Comb Her Hair" garnered over 4,600 signatures at press time. The petition was created after the famous baby was pictured arriving in New York City with an unusual hairstyle that became a topic of conversation last week.
After a number of people spoke out against Tolliver and accused her of bullying, the petition creator took to her Facebook to reveal why she decided to petition against the toddler's hair. According to Tolliver, the entire thing was a joke.
"If I would've said 'sign a petition to save LeBron James hairline' that would've took off too! It's a clever joke! Nobody came up with before," Tolliver wrote on Facebook. "These blogs and websites are doing the most. My hair looks like blue ivy right now except its moisturized and detangled."
She went on to say that people are blowing her petition out of proportion, insisting that she was proud of her race and the varied hair textures worn by people in it.
"People make nothing out of something. I love being black," she exclaimed. "I'm proud my bloodline runs from Africa. I'm proud of my own tightly coiled kinks."
Still, someone named Tammarra Letbetter felt it was necessary to counter Tolliver's change.org petition with one of her own named "Accept all kinds of hair."
"The new media outburst about Blue Ivy natural hair is disturbing and cruel. Natural hair should be applauded and appreciated rather than ridiculed and petition to change," Letbetter wrote. "In today's society straight hair or weave seems to be the leading hair styles. Natural hair is considered unkept and unprofessional."
She went on to acknowledge the military and professionals in the country.
"The military has recently changed their Regulations to say dreads and natural hair is unprofessional and unkept. It is disturbing that the media and military would consider hair to be defining factor if someone is professional or well kept for," the change.org petition states. "Blue Ivy parents are Jay Z and Beyoncé and I am sure they take very good care of their daughter. Natural hair should not be a bad stigma among the U.S. Military and Media!"