Why Does The Media Praise Light Skin?

                           

Just to recap on last weeks post I talked about how you had to understand racism as a whole before you can understand racism against skin color. This week I'm going to talk about why lighter skin is more socially acceptable than darker skin. Take a moment to think.. how often is it that you see a darker toned man or woman on the cover of a magazine? In a position of high power(other than the president)? The main singer or rapper in a group? etc. Social media changes our perception of what beauty is and what's acceptable. 

In the music industry, its the lighter skin girl who would get the most attention and the best parts. According to social media, it's the skin color that would catch your attention before her skills. She's the one that's going to make the most money, and give "shine" to the company. In the movie Dream Girls, there is a scene where Effie, the lead singer, is moved out of the spotlight by their manager because she didn't have "the look" that sells records. The position was given to a group member with a light skin tone because her face seemed more appealing to listeners. 

                                      *Fast-forward one minute into the clip.


Now let's look at how movies glorify lighter skin. The movie The Color Purple is a great example of how a lighter skin is superior. Celie, the main character, goes through hell and back by her husband, Mister because she has darker skin. To him that made her ugly and useless. Though Celie is his wife through a forced marriage, he is in love with another woman, Shug Avery whom has a lighter complexion than her. To him Shug Avery is beautiful, exciting, and everything he wants in a woman. Soon, Celie is empowered by her to become a better person and love the skin she's in. 

*Celie on the left and Shug Avery on the right.

Zola Ndlovu, a young lady who makes blogs about race, culture, faith, growth, etc says that "... this idol of beauty that we're all worshiping is an illusion." I believe that she's absolutely right. Social media influences us to think that the lighter skin is the "chosen" skin. It makes darker toned woman want to change themselves in order to fit in and feel beautiful, but what is beauty? Beauty is defined by what you want it to be. What's beautiful to one person doesn't have to be beautiful to the next.