Anyone with a pulse has likely seen, heard and cried over what feels like everyone attending the Cowboy Carter tour. But now the event and it's founder are involved in controversy. Beyoncé is in hot water with her fans, after she wore a problematic t-shirt during the Paris leg of her wildly popular Cowboy Carter tour.
The Lemonade artist is getting backlash for wearing a t-shirt with a picture of the Buffalo Soldiers – a US group of African American soldiers that was formed during the 19th century and served in the military after the Civil War. The problem lies in their involvement in the Indian Wars, when the group was deployed in the late 1800s to fight Native Americans, effectively aiding the expansion of the US and European colonisers.
Critics of Beyoncé's shirt say she's celebrating American Indian genocide by celebrating the group. On her website, the artist shares photos of the t-shirt with text saying, 'The antagonists were the enemies of peace, order and settlement: warring Indians, bandits, cattle thieves, murderous gunmen, bootleggers, trespassers, and Mexican revolutionaries.'
People argue the part calling American Indians and Mexican revolutionaries antagonists and enemies of peace is offensive. While some argue wearing the shirt full-stop was offensive, others have pointed out the lack of nuance and context in the explanation is the real issue.
One Reddit user wrote, 'As an Indigenous person, it’s disheartening to see Beyoncé wearing a Buffalo Soldier shirt. These soldiers played a direct role in the forced removal, violence, and suppression of Native peoples. I respect her impact, but this choice hurts a lot.'
Another wrote on TikTok, 'It’s understandable why this image is triggering for some, given the Buffalo Soldiers’ complex history with Native American communities. A reminder that progress for one group sometimes came at a cost to another.'
One TikTok user wrote, 'I don’t think telling their story is glorifying them. American history is made up of cruelty and injustice, and no group comes out completely innocent... British Colonialism was corrupt, and that corruption infected its victims who just wanted to survive. They couldn’t beat the system so they joined. That is true of both Native slave owners and the Buffalo Soldiers. It was survival in a system that was designed to harm both groups of people. They took whatever leg up they could get. It’s not right, it isn’t justified, it shouldn’t have happened, but it’s reality.'
This isn't the first time Beyoncé has come under fire. Earlier this year she was criticised for performing in Dubai for $20m, in light of her Renaissance album - a record celebrating queer club culture – and the city's restrictions on LGBTQ+ rights.
Ruchira Sharma is Acting Senior Editor at Grazia, where she writes and edits features for print and digital. From online dating culture, to cryptocurrency and online conspiracy theories, she's most interested by how online life shapes society, and co-hosts the pop culture podcast Everything Is Content.