Pete Wentz began trending on Twitter Tuesday for a simple reason: he's biracial. It seems some fans of the punk band Fall Out Boy had no idea Wentz, the bassist, has Jamaican heritage.
The conversation sparked after Fall Out Boy shared a statement on the Black Lives Matter movement following the killing of George Floyd.
Much of the online conversation is driven by fans who have known this for some time. It seems Fall Out Boy fans have a definite problem with the way Wentz is viewed in the public eye. Scroll through the Wentz mentions, and you'll find dozens of tweets claiming Wentz has been bullied into not talking about his race by white fans, who have no idea of his heritage or prefer to see him as being only white.
There are just as many comments that allege Wentz has been white-washed throughout his career. This conversation seems to apply both to conversations and public perceptions about Wentz, as well as literal photo white-washing.
Newsweek reached out to Wentz for his comments, but didn't immediately hear back.
Others loved that Wentz was trending and didn't care why. Instead, they joked that every so often, this conversation arises when new fans learn Wentz isn't white.
still mad that people silenced a biracial man that was talking about how this made him feel. the media has DEFINITELY whitewashed pete wentz too much.
— peter 𓆗 (@soulvoiceps) June 3, 2020
Y’all are trying really hard to invalidate Pete Wentz and his identity and FOR WHAT? “He looks white” What the hell do you want him to do about that? His mother is Jamaican, it’s mixed in his DNA. There’s no disputing that. If you can’t understand that then you are the problem. pic.twitter.com/aVSFyPAnvh
— Gwen 🍑 (@peachystumph) June 9, 2020
it’s always a good day when people finally find out pete wentz is biracial. maybe now y’all will let him talk about it without bullying him pic.twitter.com/kJ1CoyZt0C
— Ray (@anonymousownsme) June 9, 2020
Twitter finds out Pete Wentz is Black like twice a year
— april⁷ (@aprilinoctober) June 9, 2020
so apparently some of y'all made Pete Wentz ashamed of being biracial?????
— ð•.𕮠🌹 ð•®ð–”ð–‘ð–† (@Blurry_Caracal) June 9, 2020
Wentz has spoken about being biracial in the past. He shared a bit about his childhood with Kerrang in 2018. "The only thing that was a little weird is our family is mixed race, and it was a super-white neighbourhood, so it was like, 'Oh... I don't look like any of the people that I live near in this community.' But there was no great sadness to it. If anything, it made me be like, 'Well, I'm just who I am.' It gave me armour."
Fans also pointed to the fact that Wentz—as well as Fall Out Boy drummer Andy Hurley—was once part of Chicago punk band Racetraitor in the late 90s. The band released an album called Burn the Idol of the White Messiah in 1998.
Fall Out Boy first shared a black square on their social media accounts as a part of Blackout Tuesday, a day to show respect and silence for the #BlackLivesMatter movement. They released an official statement on Monday.
"When you discover rot deep within your house you don't just paint over it," the statement explains. "You dismantle it and rebuild a better house. We support the black community in the struggle against racial inequality, injustice, and police brutality by committing $100,000 from the Fall Out Boy Fund this summer. We will begin with donations to National Bail Out and Black Visions Collective. We realize this is a marathon not a sprint and plan to continue and expand our support."
The band will dedicate $100,000 to causes inspired by #BlackLivesMatter.
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