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Five months on, people are still debating whether Yewande is attractive or not

She’s called it ‘insane’


Yewande Biala is trending on Twitter today. Not because she's had a successful collaboration with fashion company In The Style a few days ago. Not because she's a biochemist with a successful career. But because people on Twitter think it's acceptable to debate whether she is attractive or not.

She told the Metro: "The last couple of days I think there’s been people debating whether they find me attractive or not. Isn’t that insane?

"It’s been on Twitter for the last few days, I’ve even seen a Tweet today like, 'You guys are trying to force Yewande on us like the way you forced Lupita [Nyong’o]'.

"There’s a huge thing about dark-skinned women and whether society finds them beautiful, and whether they find me beautiful because I’m dark-skinned.

"It has been an issue that’s been going on for the last three days, it’s like, 'Are you not tired?' It’s so mad.

"Anytime I meet people, [they say] 'Oh my god you’re so pretty' but it’s not like, 'Oh you’re so pretty”' It’s more of, 'Oh I see all the backlash you’re getting and I just want you to know I find you attractive'.

"I just feel like that ugly friend who people have to tell they’re really pretty because like, they feel sorry for them."

Yewande continued: "People feel like they have to have opinions. They forget I am a real person, I do see these comments.

"I don’t see all of them, but I do see it, I have feelings like everybody else. But I just try not to let it phase me, and just try and move on, really.

"It’s just like people having an opinion of you without even knowing you like positive or negative, it’s hard sometimes."

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