YouTuber Joey Graceffa Under Fire for Resurfaced Shane Dawson Video
Fans are demanding answers from YouTuber Joey Graceffa after people on Twitter unearthed a video of the Escape The Night star applying blackface to disgraced creator Shane Dawson. The pair frequently collaborated on videos back in the early 2010s, and were even shipped by fans (couple name: “Shoey”). Their videos together appear to have been taken down, but on Tuesday night a Twitter user posted a clip from one of their collabs in which Graceffa applies a dark shade of foundation to Dawson’s face and laughs at a number of Dawson’s racist jokes.
Graceffa is a popular YouTuber who began posting on his channel in 2009 and has earned over nine million subscribers, co-authored a handful of books, and starred in the YouTube Premium series Escape The Night for four seasons. He recently made headlines for his split from longtime partner Daniel Preda, an actor and creator behind the Escape The Night series.
heyy king heard u were giving out notices wanna explain u putting blackface on sh*ne and laughing at his racist remarks while also laughing at the fact that what u were doing was super racist ? :) @JoeyGraceffa pic.twitter.com/6bdTdeTUr7
— jules (@foreverskiss) July 29, 2020
“First we’re going to start out with foundation. It’s a little darker than your skin tone,” Graceffa says in the offending clip.
“What part of this color did you think was not going to be racist?” Dawson asks after Graceffa attempts to apply the foundation, adding in a mocking voice, “My Black fans are so angry right now.”
Dawson also makes jokes about weaves, fried chicken, and getting pulled over by police while Graceffa laughs. In a screenshot from another segment of the video, Graceffa appears to have applied the foundation on himself.
not to mention being in blackface yourself ... pic.twitter.com/XKF0Ve78yk
— jules (@foreverskiss) July 29, 2020
Dawson’s racism has been the subject of internet controversy for some time now, compounded by accusations of inappropriate comments about and towards minors and his role in the drama involving Tati Westbrook, James Charles, and Jeffree Star. He has since gone dormant on all social media platforms. While Graceffa appears to have distanced himself from Dawson, he has not responded to the resurfaced video, nor a request for comment.
Tags: News YouTube Controversy Kate Lindsay Shane Dawson Joey Graceffa