'Taylor Swift may be boring but she's not a racist': Critics rubbish claims that singer's new twerking video 'perpetuates black stereotypes'

By Mail online Reporter

Published: 00:14 EDT, 22 August 2014 | Updated: 06:22 EDT, 22 August 2014

Critics have rubbished claims that Taylor Swift's latest music video, Shake It Off, 'perpetuates black stereotypes.'

After the singles release on Monday, two members of the California hip-hop collective Odd Future branded the 24-year-old singer 'racist' with her attempts at break dancing and twerking.

However, now several members of the black community have weighed in on the debate and come to Miss Swift's defense.

Everdeen Mason, a writer and SEO for the fashion website, Refinery 29, wrote in an article titled Taylor Swift's "Twerking" Is Not Racist, how she can’t help but 'feel sorry' for the star.

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Under fire! Critics have rubbished claims that Taylor Swift's new music video 'perpetuates black stereotypes'

Inappropriate? After the release of Shake It Off on Monday, two members of the California hip-hop collective Odd Future branded the 24-year-old singer 'racist' with her attempts at break dancing and twerking

Ms Mason continues: 'Swift may be many things - boring, overly twee, and an opportunist who capitalizes on her "approachability" - but she’s probably not a racist.'

Meanwhile, an anonymous commenter for the tumblr account orhgasm.com says that as a 'proud black man' he doesn't find the video 'problematic or even close to racist.'

He adds: 'If you bothered to watch the video, the video was about being happy and dancing and celebrating other people’s dancing. One of them happened to include twerking.

'Taylor was not “cultural appropriating” anything and she wasn’t “being racist” by only having black woman in that part of the video.

'She was celebrating people’s dancing and how they celebrate music throughout the video and a large variety of black woman twerk. Would it honestly make sense if Taylor had 100 or so white girls try to twerk?'

Not mincing words: Earl Sweatshirt took to Twitter on Monday night to share his thoughts with fans, in which he lays into the star for her 'offensive' offering

Harsh: The 20-year-old had some strong opinions about a video he hadn't even yet watched - and has no plans to ever see

Not impressed: Earl Sweatshirt (left) and Flan Emoji of California hip-hop collective Odd Future took to Twitter on Monday night to slam the songstress for allegedly making a mockery of black culture

The race debate kicked off on Monday night when Odd Future singer Earl Sweatshirt took to Twitter and laid into Miss Swift for her 'offensive' offering.

'Haven't watched the Taylor Swift video and I don't need to watch it to tell you that it's inherently offensive and ultimately harmful,' the 20-year-old began.

'Perpetuating black stereotypes to the same demographic of white girls who hide their prejudice by proclaiming their love of the culture... for instance, those of you who are afraid of black people but love that in 2014 it's ok for you to be trill or twerk or say n****.'

Bandmate Flan Emoji also piped up, adding: 'You know what this Taylor Swift video is missing? Some nice graffiti by Bieber. Let's be urban, everyone! Yay, cupcakes.'

'Where is Kanye when you need him. This T Swift video is prob sponsored by the American Cronut Society,' he continued.

Website Jezebel also called the video a 'cringe-worthy mess', running through all the various scene set-ups and how they each offended another ethnic group.

Give us a T! The former darling of country music certainly may have made an error in judgement with her latest offering, but it's highly unlikely she meant any offense

Shaking it off: The catchy chorus chimes in with the empowering message, 'But the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake. Shake it off, shake it off'

The former darling of country music certainly may have made an error in judgement with her latest offering, but it's highly unlikely she meant any offense.

Indeed, the lyrics and the video are poking fun at her own reputation and apparent lack of dancing skills of any and all genres.

Such lines as, 'I go on too many dates, but I can't make them stay, at least that's what people say,' speak directly to her many very public break-ups over the past few years.

'But the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake. Shake it off, shake it off,' the catchy chorus kicks in.

The New York Times' dance critic, Brian Seibert has also spoken in support of Miss Swift.

He writes: '[If] Earl Sweatshirt had bothered to watch the video before commenting, he might have noticed the carefully placed black faces among the cheerleaders, the contemporary dancers and the regular people, and also the trashy white women among the twerkers.

'For him to have accused Ms. Swift of racism without watching the video is as unjust as if she had accused him of misogyny without first listening to his tracks.'