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The Spelling of Beyoncé’s Name Is Result of a Racist Microaggression
Today’s reminder of the insidiousness of institutionalized racism
Like everything else about her, Beyoncé’s name seems appropriately unique and fabulous. But her mother, Tina Knowles-Lawson, revealed some interesting backstory recently on the Spotify podcast, “In My Head With Heather Thomson.”
“A lot of people don’t know that Beyoncé is my last name,” Knowles-Lawson said, “It’s my maiden name.” Most of her relatives, however, had spelled it “Beyince.” It was misspelled on Knowles-Lawson’s birth certificate when she was born; when her mother tried to have it corrected, she was told: “‘Be happy that you’re getting a birth certificate,’ because at one time Black people didn’t get birth certificates.”
Knowles-Larson notes that denying or controlling Black peoples’ birth certificates said to people: “You weren’t important. It was that subliminal message.”
