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Zoe Saldana doesn’t care if you think her “Black” card should be revoked. The “Star Trek Into Darkness” star graces the cover of Ocean Drive Magazine and clapped back at critics who questioned if she was qualified to play singer/activist Nina Simone.  There was an immediate backlash in the African-American community, criticizing Saldana’s lighter skin, slim build and others saying a Latina actress had no right to play such an iconic figure.  When on-set pictures leaked of Saldana wearing makeup to darken her skin, with a prosthetic nose and mouthpiece, her naysayers became even more vocal:

RELATED: Zoe Saldana Pays No Attention To Nina Simone Biopic Backlash [VIDEO]

But the online criticism made Saldana even more determined to step into the role. For those questioning her qualifications, the outspoken actress replied, ““I can’t stop to think about who thinks me to be black enough or not black enough. I know who I am. I like who I am. And I’m not going to explain who I am. I’ve always been like that—I was raised to be that way.”

This past summer Saldana ruffled feathers when she ridiculed the concept of race and ethnicity in an interview with BET:

“I literally run away from people that use words like ethnic. It’s preposterous! To me there is no such thing as people of color cause in reality people aren’t white. Paper is white. People are pink, it’s a bit ridiculous when I have to explain to a human being, that is an adult like I am, that looks intelligent but for some reason I have to question his intelligence and explain to him as if he was a two year old, my composition in order for him to say, “Oh I guess I can chill with you, I can work with you.”

Saldana is back on the big screen in “Out of The Furnace” starring Christian Bale (opens in theaters today nationwide) and will play Gamora, a green skinned alien bounty hunter in Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” in Summer 2014.

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Zoe Saldana Addresses Critics Who Say She’s Not “Black” Enough  was originally published on theurbandaily.com