Beyonce’s mother Tina Knowles hits back at ‘activists’ slamming the singer for wearing $30M Tiffany ‘blood diamond’ that sparked backlash
- Beyonce received backlash online for wearing a ‘blood diamond’ in the Tiffany ad
- Mother Tina Knowles, 67, hit back in a fiery Instagram post on Wednesday
- ‘How many of you socially conscious activist own diamonds?’ she wrote
- The famed 128.54 carat Tiffany Diamond came from a colonial mine in Kimberley, South Africa
Beyonce’s mother Tina Knowles is defending her daughter over a new campaign for Tiffany & Co. that caused backlash online, with some fans slamming the star for wearing a ‘blood diamond.’
Earlier this week, the Halo singer and husband Jay-Z launched their ‘ABOUT LOVE’ campaign for the luxury jeweler, making Beyonce the fourth person to ever wear the iconic diamond necklace famously worn by Audrey Hepburn.
But many fans on Twitter reacted with outrage, pointing out that the famed 128.54 carat Tiffany Diamond was from a colonial mine in Kimberley, South Africa.
A blood diamond, as defined by the United Nations (UN), is any diamond that is mined and sold in that area to fund military action against a government.
Beyonce does Breakfast At Tiffany’s! The singer emulated Audrey Hepburn’s look from the 1961 classic film as she with husband Jay-Z for a new Tiffany & Co. campaign
But Tina hit back to the general response, writing: ‘How many of you socially conscious activist own diamonds ? I thought so ! Well guess what did you go to try to check to see where the diamond came from? Probably not.’
She added: ‘So when you guys get engaged you won’t have a diamond you gonna put on a sterling silver band And you better check out where it came from and the origin of where came from and why you add it check out the calls for the Leather that you weird because they made it came from another country to to ban and not buy diamonds right because your righteous !!’
Writer Zoe Samudzi tweeted: ‘Tiffany’s put Beyoncé in a diamond —”discovered” in a colonial mine in Kimberly in 1877—that no black woman has ever worn before in an ad with a never-ever-before-seen Basquiat and then pledged $2 million in scholarships & internships to HBCUs.’
Hitting back: Beyonce’s mother Tina Knowles is defending her daughter after her new campaign for Tiffany & Co. caused backlash online
Breakfast at Beyonce’s! The singer put a modern spin on Audrey’s iconic look in the Sixties romcom Breakfast at Tiffany’s where she played socialite Holly Golightly (left)
Debate: Beyonce’s campaign divided Twitter as some fans defended her
Not happy: One fan wrote about how the mine was rife for using enslaved African labor
Hitting back: Some critics took to Twitter to slam the star
Some fans pointed out that Beyonce was the unfair target of criticism, as Lady Gaga had also worn the diamond with little backlash.
Still, others were not satisfied with one user writing: ‘This is not just “a necklace” it’s a blood diamond that was mined off the blood of south africans, if they didn’t meet their quota their hands and feet were mutilated or were just killed.’
Another said: ‘[Lady Gaga] is a capitalist exploiter too, but only in the case of Beyoncé is her blackness being invoked as an “accomplishment” for wearing it despite the Africans it harmed. That’s the difference.’
The Beers’ Kimberley Mine in colonial South Africa was said to be an often dehumanizing environment for the poorly-paid black workers.
Tiffany founders Charles Tiffany purchased the stone from the mine in 1879.
Hepburn famously wore the jewel it to promote her iconic film Breakfast at Tiffany’s in 1961. Gaga later wore it at the Oscars in 2019 when she was nominated for A Star Is Born.
Defending her daughter: Tina hit back to the general response, writing,’How many of you socially conscious activist own diamonds ?’ (pictured with Beyonce in 2012)