The Black Community and Impact of Colorism on Them:

Most dark skins feel as if they’re not accepted, and are negatively influenced about their skin, so some will bleach their skin just to fit in society. In addition, some celebrities are accused of bleaching to progress with the standards set in society. Lighter skin is perceived as a “superior” complexion compared to a darker skin complexion, and this perception about skin color affects the self-esteem of most people of color (Elmore, 2009). There’s discrimination on dark skin people, especially within their own race. As a result of feeling left out in society, people tend to bleach as an escape of being a victim of discrimination. Colorism is a worldwide conflict and it’s known to be an occurrence in areas with the ideology of white supremacy. In most parts of Africa, bleaching is at an all-time high; Robert Norman noted that 77% of Nigeria’s population bleaches and coming in second place is Togo with 59% of their population bleaching (Norman, 2016). A study given by the University of Cape Town states that one out of three women in South Africa bleaches (“Dying to be White,” 2014).

The problem with bleaching mainly has to deal with self-esteem issues and since some people bleach for personal reasons, it’s a challenge to stop bleaching; in order to put an end to the bleaching, one has to be willing to believe in one’s self and build up the confidence they need to realize that they are beautiful just the way they are. In addition, to why most women in South Africa bleach is because they think their skin color holds lower standards. Even though there’s a mixture of white and black races in South Africa, there’s only one race that is more likely to be accepted by most and that’s light skin (Matala, 2017). The main reason why most dark skin females decide to bleach is that they feel like if they are of a lighter complexion then they will be highly accepted into society, and it will raise their self-esteem. Ultimately, the negative factors that most dark skins face tend to be a daily ongoing battle, having lighter skin is more likely to be perceived as a better complexion compared to having a darker skin tone. Some people who have bleached stated that they now feel more beautiful and confident.

How the Issue of Colorism Affects People in Everyday Life

A mother of two dark skin kids and who was once dark skin herself states, “I wanted to see how it would be like to be white and now I’m happy” (Fihlani, 2013, para. 4). Most mothers want to be a positive role model to her kids, and teach them about accepting who they are, but it seems impossible for parents to do so if they have trouble accepting themselves. Women especially seem to have a problem with being of a dark appearance. “In many parts of Africa and Asia, lighter-skinned women are considered more beautiful, are believed to be more successful and [are] more likely to find marriage” (Fihlani, 2013). Many celebrities have faced colorism throughout their careers and it’s still an ongoing battle for most. Although, some celebrities are known for their flawless dark skin and get praised for it, others are put to shame for their complexion. For instance, Lupita Nyong’o is known for her gorgeous dark skin and has a lot of achievements in the entertainment and beauty industry, but that doesn’t stop her from receiving hate from within the black community.

Gilbert Arenas, an African American man, came to social media and insulted Nyong’o by stating how she only looks good when the lights are off. Nyong’o hasn’t replied to the comment, but this negative attitude is the type that lowers self esteem. Nyong’o states how she wants “to create opportunities for other people of color,” but sadly this can be a challenge if she is receiving negative responses about her color (Rubin, 2016, para. 12). Most of the celebrities that were interviewed about colorism have a similar background story on how they were tormented about their skin color. In an interview with Nyong’o she explains how she used to get “teased and taunted” about her “night-shaded” complexion, she also states how she used to pray to God that she would one day have lighter skin and got disappointed when she woke up to the same color (Olumide, 2016).

Skin Transformation as an Attempt to Get Rid of Prejudice

Another interview that touched up on the same subject was given to an African American female named Keke Palmer. Palmer states how she prayed for lighter skin because she would hear discouraging phrases like how she “was pretty to be dark skinned. ” Also, Gabrielle Union shares some of her background stories on how she grew up with a majority of whites and she didn’t feel accepted. Her breaking point was when she experienced a breakup and the guy ended up choosing a “light skinned girl;” this was when Union’s insecurities arose, and she started questioning her self worth (Nittle, 2016, para. 9). Not only do dark skin celebrities get called negative names, but they are sometimes accused of using bleaching products, celebrities such as Michael Jackson, Sammy Sosa, and Lil Kim have all been accused of bleaching. When checking out their photos from then and now you can see a difference in the color of their skin. Michael Jackson never spoke out against the accusations, but it was known that he had a skin condition called Vitiligo.

In his autopsy it revealed that he had vitiligo, and he used a cream called Benoquin, which treated the skin disease by bleaching the pigmented spots (Harris, 2016). Sammy Sosa agrees to the accusations, stating that the bleaching cream he uses is applied every night. The most shocking transformations is the one of Lil Kim. Although it’s pretty noticeable that she’s had a major transformation, some say that she is still denying the accusations. The African American celebrities that have had extraordinary transformations made to their skin complexion, are presumed to give people of color a negative insight on how they can positively deal with not being accepted into societies standards. Since some people idolize certain celebs, they tend to follow and admire all the celebs actions even if some aren’t the best decision. Some people will look at these negative actions and may feel like they should change themselves in order to satisfy everyone else, or they may think that if they don’t change themselves then they will never be accepted. Out of all the races black people tend to discriminate the most on each other which is called colorism, and there’s discrimination on dark skins especially in the black community; thus, makes most dark skins feel like they can’t associate themselves with any other race because not even their own race will accept them. Although it may seem like only women bleach but men are also known for doing it too, a guy named Jackson Marcelle states “I pray every day and I ask God, ‘God why did you make me black? ’

I don’t like being black. I don’t like black skin” (Fihlani, 2013, para. 5). As you can see, there are different types of racism, some being within certain communities known as colorism. Colorism affects the black community in a tremendous way; however, much may say that it’s not only dark skins who are affected by colorism, but evidence suggest that dark skins are impacted the most; from young kids praying to be lighter, to bleaching in hopes to be accepted into society. No, colorism can’t be changed in a matter of days, weeks, or even months, but addressing the problem will provide people with information that will lead them in the positive direction of self-acceptance.

Works Cited

1. Elmore, V. (2009). The Color Complex: A Study of the Effects of Skin Color on African American Self-Esteem. Journal of Black Studies, 39(3), 408-425.
2. Norman, R. (2016). Skin Bleaching and Global White Supremacy: By Way of Introduction. Journal of Pan African Studies, 9(4), 1-11.
3. "Dying to be White: Skin Bleaching in South Africa." (2014). University of Cape Town. Retrieved from http://www.health-e.org.za/2014/03/12/dying-white-skin-bleaching-south-africa/
4. Matala, N. S. (2017). Complexion-Based Discrimination and Skin Bleaching in South Africa: The Political Economy of Skin Color. African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies, 10(1), 20-39.
5. Fihlani, P. (2013). Africa: Where Black is Not Really Beautiful. BBC News. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-20444798
6. Rubin, B. (2016). Lupita Nyong'o Speaks Out on Beauty and Color Prejudice. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/27/fashion/lupita-nyongo-beauty-advice-interview.html
7. Olumide, Y. M. (2016). Skin Bleaching: "Self-Hate" and "Colonial Mentality" Discourse in Nigerian Blogs. Journal of Black Studies, 47(4), 379-402.
8. Nittle, N. K. (2016). Gabrielle Union: Colorism Made Me Feel I Wasn't Beautiful. ThoughtCo. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/gabrielle-union-on-colorism-and-beauty-2834557
9. Harris, C. (2016). Michael Jackson's Autopsy Reveals Startling Secrets About His Health. People. Retrieved from https://people.com/celebrity/michael-jackson-autopsy-reveals-startling-secrets-about-his-health/
10. Fihlani, P. (2013). The Men Who Want to Be Like Michael Jackson. BBC News. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-20444797