“I recall summertime visits from my maternal great-grandmother, a well-educated, light-complexioned, straight-haired black southern woman who discouraged me and my brother from associating with darker-skinned children or from standing or playing for long periods in the July sunlight, which threatened to blacken our already too-dark skin” (Graham 1).
Graham uses his grandmother’s anecdote to address the prevalent negative connotations associated with being darker-skinned as opposed to being lighter-skinned.
Having a lighter skin tone in society is an ideology that goes back to the days of the enslavement of Africans. As seen in Lawrence Otis Graham’s selection from Our Kind of People, the lighter skinned slaves were more often found working in the house and had different opportunities for education, better food, and better living conditions while field slaves usually did not have any chance of getting educated and were forced to endure the poorest food and living conditions. This was a direct action taken by racist whites to put the idyllic lighter skin on a pedestal.
Today, magazines, television, and other sources of media portray lighter-toned skin as the beauty ideal. “In 1990 $44 million was spent on skin bleaching products in this country” (Racism, Colorism and Power). Typically, Black people with darker-shaded skin were often portrayed negatively in movies. If a film was not an explicitly Black film, then the Black characters would often get killed off first, or something of that nature, if it was that type of movie. In other films and television shows, darker women tended to have “worse” things happen to them. In a Maryland study, 76% motorists stopped on highway were African American—meanwhile, only 20% were licensed drivers in that state. In a recent article by Kia Miakka Natisse, rapper Lil’ Wayne allegedly stated that, “he made sure that all his other baby mommas were light-skinned.” Here at FSU, we occasionally receive crime updates via email. Most of the criminal profiles describe Black males, along with the infrequent Hispanic male. It is plain to see that not only racial prejudice but also inter-racial prejudice still exists today. The question is, how do college-aged students respond to this treatment? Why does it exist? How can this generation improve upon the negative ideas placed on Blacks of a darker shade?
Sources:
Lawrence Otis Graham’s excerpt from Our Kind of People
Larry D. Crawford’s article Racism, Colorism and Power (http://www.nbufront.org/FRONTalView/ArticlesPapers/Crawford_RacismColorismPower.html)
Kia Miakka Natisse’s article Lil' Wayne's love of light-skinned women leads to black-lash (http://www.thegrio.com/entertainment/lil-waynes-love-of-light-skinned-women-leads-to-protests.php)
Photo: (http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/to-be-honest-does-a-black-man-scare-you-as-president/question-212269/?link=ibaf&imgurl=http://ithinkbeyond.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/skin-colors-711079-sw.jpg&q=black%2Bpeople%2Bdifferent%2Bshades)
Vanessa White
ReplyDeleteI’m not sure as to how college –aged students respond to this treatment because I haven’t’ really seen this treatment in action. For instance, I’ve read about it and may watch it on television but I’ve never really seen it happen. From what I can tell I don’t think there is a response, it just seems like everyone just goes with whatever happens. Another point is that some college students may involved in the treatment. For example, when it comes to the inter-racial prejudice, there are those students out there who won’t speak to someone because there dark skinned or those that only prefer dark skinned people in the African American race. These prejudices still exist today because people allow them to exist. People can say they got “rid of racism but when it comes down to it there is still prejudices out there and a new form of discrimination called colorism. If people really want to get rid of this then it starts with educating people. This generation can improve upon the negative ideas placed on Blacks of a darker shade by first of all not making jokes of those of a darker shade. For instance, sometimes I hear guys talking with their homeboys and there just cracking on each other say” Oh you’re so dark.. etc” comparing them to the darkest thing they can find. People say that that is all in fun and games but to be honest I know that after constantly going through that, that that may hurt. We need to be able to see a dark girl and say “oh she’s pretty” instead of “oh she’s pretty for a dark girl, or “oh she would be pretty if she wasn’t dark”. When I hear things like that, it just amazes me to the ignorance of some people. For me it’s like you are an African American making fun of a skin tone that just happens to be a little darker than your own, but you are the same race of people. We should be uplifting each other not bringing each other down.
Adrianne Carter AML2600
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately college aged students in America have most likely already had to deal with racial profiling. So, when they are faced with it in their schools they have already developed mechanisms for dealing with it. How they deal with it mostly depends on where, how, and by whom they were brought up. Negativity is forced on people of darker skin pigment, and it really cannot be justified. However it is most likely historically motivated. People have within themselves a list of prejudices passed down from societal and parental upbringing. In order to break the cycle the harm that comes from looking down on people because of their skin color along with its causes must be first put into light and then publicly admonished, so that it becomes more shameful and less likely to happen.
Alexa MacKenzie
ReplyDeleteI can see how these issue arise in our society today, and inevitably in college communities as well. I'm sure the fear of being racially profiled causes many people not to branch out into other communities and thus creates the cycle of racism just due to lack of understanding. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder sometimes isnt enough when you are constantly feeling judged by society. I can't say I have ever specifically seen an instance of prejudice against darker skinned people, but I am aware of the stigma. It's also clear that in popular films and magazines these women and men with darker complexions aren’t prevalent. To have this type of judgment be abolished first the inter-racial judgment must end. Because until you can accept yourself your peers won't be able to see past superficial things such as how dark your skin is. It's a sad topic that really is just exhausted, who cares how dark someone's skin is? It's ridiculous to think it affects peoples judgments that much that people feel offended by it.
Travis Baten
ReplyDeleteThe environment I grew up in had a slight emphasis on the difference between light-skinned people and dark-skinned people. Yet, it was an environment that i outgrew and one that outgrew that idea.
Differences will always be pointed out as there will always be differences among people. As a society, we must elevate above seeing this as a problem. Three out of my four best friends are dark. I joke with them about them being dark. They joke with me about being light. My male best friends are taller than me. They jokes with me about my height. I joke with them about being tall. We recognize our differences, we even poke fun at them at times, but it is never anything negative.
We ought to embrace our differences for they are what make us the individuals we are today. The prejudice may be a matter of true opinion or preference. You cannot fault someone for preferring blue Doritos over red Doritos. It is the taste they prefer. Well why can't our other senses have a preference? Some people like lighter-skinned people. Some people like darker-skinned people. When it comes to things of this nature, it is not prejudice but simply preference.
As far as treatment, college-aged students can only lead by example. Once people began to see that there is no real difference based on what society does, then eventually they will conform. If they do not, they will die out and those that succeed them will be raised in the society where color is irrelevant when it comes to treatment.
Kandis Hankerson AML2600
ReplyDeletePersonally I would not let certain things phase me for the simple fact that it is 2011 and if people are still showing signs of prejudicy then so be it. Black people and any other race should just learn how to ignore these types of situations because some people will never change. Though from looking at different organizations such as the black student union I have heard them being involved in certain controversial issues such as the Jena 6. So I would say that some college-aged students will fight for certain causes and situations. The existence to the situation dates back to slavery and it is simple the whites purchased the blacks. Still today in America many whites still feel that they are more superior then blacks. This generation will only be able to improve upon the negative ideas is by empowering each other. If blacks will stop trying to degrade one another, then that is when things will start turning around. Appreciating the fact that black is beautiful will then helps the situation. Until then we will never prosper as a whole.
Jerold Blount
ReplyDeleteBy college-aged, i'm assuming you mean around late teens early twenties. Well, I'm twenty nine and i've experienced prejudiced treatment throughout my life, before and throughout college. Though i'm more aware of foul treatment now than I was at a young age, I respond to it much better than I used to, which in most cases is NOT AT ALL. Unless their actions affect or address me directly I don't give haters the satisfaction of thinking they can hinder my state of mind by revealing the fallacy in their own.
The most important thing we can do to improve negative outlooks on darker shades of black people (along with all other shades)is to hold ourselves accountible and strive to be the best humans we can be, regardless of shade. As for people who judge others based on anything as trivial as skin color, it should be continuously exposed as faulty judgement found in flawed minds. If we make it our business to encourage and acknowledge the GOOD done in our communities by blacks of all colors it will help to prove the stigma wrong by example. Besides, you know what they say : "Chocolate is the food of the Gods"
Stephen Yanes
ReplyDeleteThroughout my life I have always noticed a correlation between crime and black people. It seems that all the people that commit crimes today are either black or some sort of "trailer trash." I feel that the media is a big reason for the mistreatment of people of different color, whether they are black, hispanic, or even white. As a latino in a predominantly white university setting I find that even I am discriminated against. Discrimination may not be specifically directed toward African Americans, but to people of different race and ethnicities. Just because someone has not been born of a specific skin color does not give anyone the right to mistreat or put down someone of another color or race.
People may make jokes about situations where racial profiling may take place, but I feel it's the jokes that cause the problem in the first place. Nobody can take anyone else seriously when it comes to a racial topic, unless someone is specifically committing a crime. By then all the stereotypes have been lived up to or thrown out the window.
It really comes down to what people see or hear from their parents throughout their lives, as well as the local news or media. I feel that people have to make decisions on their own about others and not follow the norm seen in the media especially if the norm happens to be one that is filled with bias and malice toward people regardless of their skin color.
Jasmin Faust
ReplyDeleteI have always believed that racism is something that has to be taught to you. No child sees color as either "good" or "bad" unlesss the environment they are associated with teaches them so. As college students we should now be able to handle oppresive situations regardless of the circumstance. As a society regardless of the race we have to realize that we can never change how someone truly feels about us. The only way this generation can improve on the negative connotations about racism is to prove the stereotypes wrong. Whether light skinned or dark skinned African Americans period will always have to prove themselves in this world thats just how it is. As todays generation it is our job to educate one another, then people will follow by example, until then racism will always play its role in America.
Gerald Law
ReplyDeleteThis overcoming of this 'treatment' will happen as we realize that having a lighter complexion doesn't make you a better person. The problem is, however, in trying to convey this message, we have to battle with a media that is constantly potraying lighter-skinned people as the object of envy. Darker-skinned individuals sometimes have self-esteem issues because of the frequent 'put downs' towards people of their skin tone. As African-Americans, we've already delt with our share of racism. But the fact that this racism seems to have become an interacial issue is ridiculous. As a people who struggled together, I feel that we should strive towards the advancement of all our brothers and not just the lighter.
Kristin Salter
ReplyDeleteI think that college-age students can deal with this by not condoning the thought that lighter skinned black people are better off than darker skinned black people. It is hard because media does not make the situation better. For instance, one of the most popular rap artist’s of our time Lil’ Wayne has a line in one of his recent songs that says, “beautiful black woman, I bet that bitch look better red” (“red” meaning light skinned). This creates a lasting problem because black people are not his only audience, in fact there are many white people that love listening to Lil’ Wayne. So now instead of only black people noticing and placing judgments on light skin verses dark skin, white people may think one is better than the other as well. But what about the white people that get tans on a regular? How come nobody ever questions their wanting to be darker like they question the black person who wants to always be in the shade in the summer time to preserve their light skin color? Or when there is a group of white people with one “token black boy/girl”, that one black person is typically one of the darkest black people but the white group he/she is hanging with does not reject him/her. So personally I think that the whole light skin verses dark skin perception is media induced. Some people fall victim to those awful perceptions and others do not, it all depends on the individual.
LaQuanda Smith
ReplyDeleteAfrican-Americans as a whole have delt with prejudices and racism, but it becomes another issue when we are racist amoungst our own kind. For years we've had this presumption that 'lighter is better.' We get the idea that lighter is better form the media and the environment that we are in. For example, beauty commercials, light-skinned women are portrayed as beautiful. Thus leaving darker-skinned women with low self-esteem because they don't fit the discription. I strongly believe that racism and prejudice is NOT a reason to feel uncomfortable or ashamed with the skin that you're in. As a whole we should empower one another so that we can move past this.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteNathaniel Watson
ReplyDeleteThis post reminds me of something a friend of mine once said. She's a beautiful, tall dark skinned woman. Although it's a source of pride for her, its also a source of frustration at times. She told me once that she was "giving up on black men for good". She felt that black men seem to only want a short, well-endowed, light-skinned woman rather than a woman like herself. She cited many instances of people telling her that she looked good "for a dark girl" and being somewhat taken aback by the statement. To some degree, the perception that black men only like short light-skinned women is a misconception, but there is a degree of truth to it. The media creates a cyclical effect, feeding the misconception, but also feeding the actual feeling at the same time, glorifying lighter skinned females and, to some degree, casting off females of a darker tone. Young black men get somewhat indoctrinated by the media and other older black men to think in such a fashion about lighter skinned women. Nothing I've said hasn't been said before, the only issue now is how we could possibly change the adverse feelings toward darker skinned females.
Althea Daley: I think in the college environment we reinforce this behavior, sometimes unintentionally. Females tend to get offended when a guy states that he prefers light skinned women over dark but at the same time they won't hesitate to say they prefer a darker skinned guy. This double standard plays into the whole light skin vs. dark skin battle. A lot of light skinned women define themselves (long haired, thick, red-bone) based on their complexion because of what our society has imposed upon them. The other day I was in an E-Board meeting and this girl pointed out that out of the 11 of us, only three were dark skinned and everyone else is "red". I personally, don't consider myself light skinned although some might feel otherwise. The fact remains, as long as we put emphasis on what shade a person is whether it is in a positive or negative light, the "battle of the shades" will continue.
ReplyDeleteAs we addressed in class, the light skinned versus dark skin battle amongst African-American men and women will not cease. This ideal dates back to the enslavement of Africans when the “master” created different social classes that were defined by a slave’s skin color. The media often portrays light skinned women as the more desired women over darker shaded women. For example, I remember watching The Fresh Prince of Bell-Air one day and realized that beautiful dark skinned Vivian was replaced by a lighter skinned woman with more “European’ attributes. I felt that this change was another way for mainstream America to tell Dark skinned women that they aren’t perceived as beautiful and received harsher treatments. Because every college campus is different, people respond to the color issue in different ways. At parties and gatherings I have heard Black men say “Oh, she fine I would date her if she wasn’t so dark skinned” while they were looking for potential girlfriends. When Lil’ Wayne wrote the ridiculous “beautiful black women, I bet she looks better red”, every guy that I knew were saying how they are going to marry a light skinned women because she is better. Our generation can improve upon the idea that the term dark skinned has a negative connotation by accepting the differences of others. Our generation can remind themselves that black is beautiful no matter what skin color a person is. When we get to that point and remove the mental enslavement that is ingrained in our heads that lighter is better than we can truly say that we have progressed as a people.
ReplyDeleteIndia Williams
ReplyDeleteAs a “light skinned” African-American woman, I was often teased growing up about my color and the comments that people use to say to me were hurtful and judgemental. I was called a white girl on a daily basis and was often asked questions like “do you glow in the dark?”. As I got older, I would hear comments like “she think she is better because she is light” and one guy even told me that I wouldnt look as good if I wasnt light skinned.
Personally, I feel like no one can help what color they are and how someone carries themselves is what makes them beautiful no matter what their genetic make up is. Distinguishing differences between a race is only separating it more than bringing it together. We have so many problems within the African-American community because we are so quick to notice why we are different rather than what we have in common other than just slavery. We often let the media perceive us how they want, and we stand back and just watch it rather than say anything or try to change it. Lil’Wayne says that, “he made sure that all his other baby mommas were light-skinned” but that fact of the matter is, daughter is darker than he is but I’m sure that he would love her no matter what her color was and just recently he found that he has another child who is just as dark.
On a college campus, no matter the location, there will always be differences in color and culture and that is what makes a college campus unique. You cannot expect people to like you even for small reasons such as your skin color. Its sad that people feel that they are superior to others because of their color but the fact is that it is still apart of our society. Its not much that we could do to change how others feel but to educate them and instill in the minds of our future generations to accept people as they are rather than what they aren’t.
Clive Hall
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure everyone knows who Lil Wayne is. There was a verse in one of his songs that said something like "black girl look good but i bet she look better red". The society I grew up in was all about appearances and what you looked like on the inside. At the end of the day, no one really cared what you actually brought to the table. If you were light skinned and smart, or talented, then it was a plus. If you were dark skinned, you had to excel in anything that you did in order to make a name for yourself. Am i saying that I agree with the way things were? No, I am absolutely not. All I'm saying is there is no need to ignore what is so blatantly obvious. All I can do is rise above the ignorance. That's what I personally think it is, ignorance. To view someone better than someone else just because of the color of their skin is pure ignorance. But you can't change the fact that it's what's going in mainstream society. As a college student, the only thing I can do is better myself and hopefully inspire the ones around me to rise above the ignorance as well.
Paige Strickland
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how college students respond to inter-racial prejudice because I have not really seen any inter-racial prejudice going on around campus. Maybe I have not noticed it going on, but the way I see it is you can be beautiful no matter what skin shade you are. I know that I worked as a receptionist at a modeling company this summer at UCF, and they preferred darker skinned woman over lighter skinned. I think it is unfair and almost stupid to have inter-racial prejudism. But my thought is if there is still racism going on today, then it is by an ignorant person, who shouldn't even be acknowledged when they discriminate. It is not even worth it. That would be my response to inter-racial prejudism. I almost think that improving the negative ideas is not something that we, as a generation, can do together. It is up to the people that actually are doing the discriminating to change their outlook on this subject. I feel that really the only way to get rid of it is to slowly let it die out, and to educate the next generations to come on the negative aspects of this subject. I feel that this will help to improve the problem.
Cameron Leonard
ReplyDeleteBlack college students at some point have experienced both racial and inter racial profiling. While working a summer job in Orlando I was called a Nig by a customer while they were driving away in their car. At that moment if I could have gotten to him I would've fought that guy. One for calling me a Nig, but the other because I felt like I was living in the Civil rights movement. I experienced a taste of what was going on then. I believe college students deals with racial profiling as it comes to them. The only way to deal with it, you have to know that it still exist and I don't believe that some college students believes it exist. I don’t know if there is something we can do to improve because we won’t come together for one cause of equality. I believe that we have gotten as far as we can go unless we take interest of better ourselves as human and shedding our racial ghost that haunts us daily.
LaQuinnesha Thompson
ReplyDeleteI personally don't know why the media is trying to promote the idea that lighter is better because I don't always think that lighter is prettier. There are some pretty ugly light skinned people, as well as there are some drop dead gorgeous dark skinned people. But unfortunately, my opinion isn't really shaping the way America is ran. To the media, the object is to get as close to white as possible and as a college student all I can do is pray that the views expressed by mainstream society aren't the views practiced by my classmates. I don't personally see the whole light vs dark topic being as popular as it use to be, but I do see the relevance in Group 2's arguments. The only thing that we could do as a group is ignore the stupidity and embrace our differences. We are all made different and even if realistically we may not be equal, we are equal in a sense that no one color is better than the other. It's all about preferences; some people prefer chocolate over vanilla or caramel.
Ashlee Thompson
ReplyDeleteAs far as the interracial prejudice goes I don’t know if we should be referring to it as prejudice or preference. I come from a background where I was taught not to see color but to see the person for who they are. But as a college student I don’t think it’s a BIG problem amongst us, in our school. I see it every now and then but I think it’s more apparent in younger generations. As for our generation I just think people have a preference. Being a lighter skin tone doesn’t make you more physically attractive. In every race there is a more appealing group then others. But skin tone, I think is only a determining factor based on one’s upbringing and personal experiences. I have a friend that refuses to date black women, light or dark, because he has had bad experiences with both. When it comes to the media, I think black females are always portrayed with the curly afro light skinned or dark skinned like black females can’t have straight hair. For example have any of you ever seen the polar express. If you pay attention the little black girl cartoon has nappy hair in the back. When I pointed that out to my mom she replied, “that’s what the world sees when they look at little black girls”. And commercials for feminine hygiene products always have that one black female with the natural fro. I have yet to see the media portray a black female as being ability to have hair that is not any kind of afro. But the white women’s hairstyles can change in color and style.
Ms. Otgna K. Dorno
ReplyDeleteI think that as college-aged students we can respond to this by choosing to ignore the current beauty standards and making color blind decisions. As mentioned in class and through in the topic, most of these beauty ideals are passed down or communicated through the media. So rather than have the media choose what we should call beautiful, we can define beauty ourselves. We can do this by refraining from attaching negative labels to darker things and hope that our actions expose a new idea to the people around us; and hope that they too change how they define beauty.
I believe that the color tone stereotypes exist because of the way power (and as a result wellness) is distributed in most societies. Historically it was the English, the French, and the Dutch who went about colonizing populations, and they were lighter than the indigenous people. As a result power and attributes of the dominant group, including skin tone were admired and sought after. I suppose that these desires and power associations were passed on to younger generations.
This generation can help eradicate the negative perception of darker people by accurately portraying reality and by teaching our children that lighter is not necessarily prettier. I feel as though if the news were to report crimes and negative circumstances of darker people as well as the lighter ones that would help deal with the negative views are blacks as everything bad. Also if in our movies and other forms of media, all characters regardless of their phenotype had an equal chance at love and wellness people may begin to see that lighter skin tones and other European features are not necessarily better.
Greg Reid
ReplyDeleteLight skinned people are viewed in a more positive manner than darker-skinned people in society. This positive view is evident in all forms of meida-televison, magazines, Hollywood films, and so forth. Darker skinned people are rarely seen in a positive light in film or tv. The only place it does not seem to be as obvious is in music, but more so with males than with female performers.
This same belief exists on the college campus as well. In order for people to change their opinions of darker skinned individuals, more darker-skinned males and females will have to be in the spotlight such as in Student Government, Greeks, and in other areas where their personality and intelligence can shine.
This belief is also seen in dating. It seems that lighter-skinned people seem to get more attention from the opposite sex. I do not know what can be done to change society's belief that lighter skin is better, and I am not sure that opinion is something that can be changed unfortunately.