Lupita Nyong'o blasts magazine editors for retouching her natural hair

Lupita Nyong'o has called out editors of a U.K. magazine for retouching her natural hair.

The Academy Award-winning actress graces the cover of Grazia's November 2017 issue, posing in a black beaded camisole with her hair styled to appear as if it has been shaved into a very short crop.

However, Lupita has claimed that photo editors have cropped her loose afro ponytail from the imagery, and shared unedited pictures from her shoot on her Instagram page to point out the differences.

"I am disappointed that @graziauk invited me to be on their cover and then edited out and smoothed my hair to fit their notion of what beautiful hair looks like," she captioned a post showing both the original and the new image so her 4.2 million followers could see the difference. "Had I been consulted, I would have explained that I cannot support or condone the omission of what is my native heritage with the intention that they appreciate that there is still a very long way to go to combat the unconscious prejudice against black women's complexion, hair style and texture."

Lupita has long been an advocate for body positivity and champions the depiction of diversity within advertising imagery and fashion campaigns. Accordingly, she expressed her disappointment at having her natural hair edited in a way that conflicts with her personal beliefs.

"I embrace my natural heritage and despite having grown up thinking light skin and straight, silky hair were the standards of beauty, I now know that my dark skin and kinky, coily hair are beautiful too. Being featured on the cover of a magazine fulfills me as it is an opportunity to show other dark, kinky-haired people, and particularly our children, that they are beautiful just the way they are," she stated.

Grazia U.K. editors are yet to comment on Lupita's claims. However, this is not the first time a magazine has been accused of digitally altering the 34-year-old's appearance for an image.

In January 2014, Vanity Fair was criticized by social media users who felt her dark skin looked lighter.