A TikToker faced backlash over a video about Spanish architecture in Mexico after users quickly pointed out the buildings were a product of colonization

• Influencer Melissa Ray shared a TikTok Thursday of her trip to Oaxaca, Mexico. 
• In the video, Ray expressed gratitude for the Spanish architecture built in Mexico.
• TikTok users were quick to call out Ray's comment and the harmful, ongoing effects of colonization. 

Melissa Ray, an Arizona-based content creator, is facing backlash after she voiced appreciation for Spanish architecture while traveling in Oaxaca, Mexico, on TikTok. 

The video, which was posted on Thursday and has over 200,000 views as of Saturday, shows Ray documenting "day in the life" content. At the end of the TikTok, Ray highlights her "gratitude" for the Spanish-influenced architecture found in Oaxaca. 

 

Ray begins the video by taking viewers through her day as a content creator on vacation in Oaxaca, filming at different locations throughout the city.

"Spent the rest of the day touring Oaxaca, admiring everything. It looks like Spain. I know it's not, it's Mexico. But, Spain did conquer Mexico and I'm just so grateful that I don't have to fly so far to admire this beauty," Ray says in the video.

However, Ray's TikTok failed to address the harmful effects of Spanish colonization in Mexico, which lasted from 1521 to 1824, according to the History channel.

Ray did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

TikTok users voiced that her commentary was "unnecessary" and "racist" in the comments section

"I am so happy that you get to make your wannabe Española content because of the unforgivable violence that happened and continues to happen to both my ancestors and contemporary indigenous peoples," Tiktok user vanillasalt333 said in a stitched video. "Looks like we didn't suffer for nothing y'all, these aesthetic girly pops got exactly what they're looking for."  

Señor Barragan, a TikTok creator and social justice advocate, questioned Ray's decision to keep the video up despite the backlash. "It's hard to believe that your apology is sincere if you don't do the bare minimum to correct it," Barragan said.

In a second video Ray shared, the Arizona-based influencer used a sound from the Disney movie "Pocahontas." Users again pointed out that the choice was tone-deaf, as the movie plot follows a romance between Pocahontas, a young Native American woman, and John Smith, a British explorer who helped colonize the Powhatan people of modern-day Virginia. 

Barragan called Ray's follow-up post and suggested she be more careful with how she uses her platform.

Many users also highlighted the significance of Oaxaca in the fight against Spanish colonization in Mexico. The 300-year colonial period in the Mexican city created a racist hierarchy that put indigenous people at the bottom of their societal structure. According to the History Channel, Oaxaca was at the forefront of freeing Mexico from Spanish control.