Monday, August 21, 2006

Color Struck

You know for me I love my dark skin and love all black/brown skin whether you are light or dark. To quote my homegirl G I am "Six Feet 230 lbs of chocolatey goodness" (WHOA, I will never say that one again). But I am not so blind to know that at one time my people didn't have much self worth because of the way society treats us and in turn didn't appreciate our own dark and lovely skin colors. With the addage that light skindededed brothers were out, and the craze of natural hairdo's I assumed that those days were long gone. I wish I wasn't so wrong.....



I feel really strongly about this one and think that everyone should see this video. I really feel like we as a people need to start teaching our children to love themselves and not pass down these tired ideas that have been forced on us from generation to generation. Real Talk: I almost started crying when the kids were doing the doll test. This is just sad ya'll. Let me know what you think.

7 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Powerful post my ni99...I gotta link to this joint in a blogpost. People need to see the video. I definitely know at least two women who could really appreciate that video.

10:26 AM  
Blogger jendayi said...

Maybe I'm just naive, but I was truly shocked at the responses from the children during the doll test. With as many pro-black, fight the influence, racial conscious innuendos out there, I thought that "we" would have been ok by now. But boy am I wrong. What are we doing, or rather, what are we not doing to our children that is causing them to think that they're not nice or that they're not pretty because of their skin color? I mean, I'm really confused. What are "our" parents telling them? I understand that society's influences are strong, but if "our" parents are doing anything to balance out those stereotypes, then we're lost. And we're always going to be lost. I loved what the last girl said about not knowing where we are truly from which forces us to accept ideas from other cultures. I agree that we're so occupied with trying to find what we lost, that we're forced to identify with what's thrown at us in the meantime. I wonder how different "our" world would be if we knew the specifics of where we came from. I wonder how much more beautiful we would be. This video definitely pulled out a lot of different emotions in me, but the most dominate one is anger. =/

11:39 AM  
Blogger jendayi said...

I meant "if our parents AREN'T doing anything to balance out.."

11:45 AM  
Blogger Daneger said...

Yeah I went thru a lot of emotions with this one too. I think I was shocked by the way our children perceived their own color more than anything else in the video and I really think that with all the things parents concentrate on, loving yourself is still falling thru the cracks. I wasn't so mad but more sad about this one though. I feel like it gives me a heads up about some things I need to watch out for when I become a father one day and I think we as a people need to pay more attention.

I was pissed about that d@mn lady using the bleaching cream they talked about.

11:49 AM  
Blogger T.a.c.D said...

While I truly appreciated this video for brining these issues to the forefront...I do have some issues with this, as I do so many videos, interviews, or reports...you have a 15 second blurb about the fact that "light skinned" women have thier issues too and that's it!
To me that is such an injustice to a sector or part of our culture...being light skinned and NOT fitting into the sterotypical, "good" long hair, skinny category, but rather the "kinky" hair, thick category...I don't seem to fit in...

I remember having to search and search and search for my niece a Barbie doll that looked like her...the black one was too dark and the white one was well white...she didn't not want to play with the black doll because she was dirty (and I agree TOTALLY that our parents need to start teaching self love and appreciation because for that little girl to point to the black doll and say it was "bad" broke my heart...again, in my opinion it is going to have to start with US our generation and bringing things back to basics for our families...) but rather because the doll did NOT look like her...its either one or the other and if you are light or brown which way are you supposed to go.

I will never forget the time I got whopped because I called my darker cousin a coon...I was 7, I had NO idea what that word meant...My Grandfather called us that...but my grandmother thought that I at 7 understood...it was a lesson I that I will NEVER forget...because when she called me white, she didn't have anything done to her...it was like a double standard...that still exsists today in our family...I got it "easy" according to them so that's why THEY are so hard on me, while she on the other hand doesn't...to me that's not fair because I have my own battles...being a light African American has just as many issues as being a brown or dark African American...different route on the same racism highway...


I feel the pain of all the sisters...but I just really don't think that this movie presents a total view...and I would have liked to see a little more of a variety of colors...there was not ONE sista in there as light as me, NOT one...I don't feel like my story was represented...its GREAT that others were, but mines wasn't...

Ditto with the not knowing where you are from leaves a gapping whole that is only to be filled by what "society" tells you is beautiful...which brings me to my next point...the end when you see the young ladies getting relaxers and weave put it only to me shows how are are assimulating to "societies" standards...which is true to a certain extent...but everything we do, even natural hair, requires a process and I just feel like that too was presented one sided...

Over all its a topic that is near and deat to MY heart being that MY family is so many shades from my Madea who is blue black (literally) to my Grandfather who could literally pass for being a white man (and this is one BOTH sides)
The color issue is something that is near and dear to my heart...and I don't think that enough of the lighter brothers and sisters are heard...I am personally angry and sad because of this...but the beat goes on...I don't want to take up anymore space about this...as you can see...its deep for me

12:14 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just an addition to what TC posted...

I mean that video was an eye opener to issues that have never “gone” away. I agree with TC and I really feel it’s worse on our end being sistahs of the light skin. It’s like we are constantly being reminded we are Black by the White folks, but then we have to constantly “prove” that we are Black to the Black folks!! Hence, the reason why I stayed in altercations with darker skinned females….oh because I’m light skinned I’m stuck up, can’t and won’t fight, and think I’m better than everyone else…..and it didn’t help that I had long hair and light eyes.

This is a pretty pressing issue that needs to be addressed. I’m thankful and fortunate that I never felt the way these children and young females feel…..I always thought the black baby dolls were pretty and I had both…but, more black than white.

Now what did infuriate me as I got old enough to understand was when people always use to say how my older sister was such a “pretty black girl”. I mean damn, why couldn’t she just be a pretty little girl…we all know she’s black?!! The fact that she was darker than the rest of us had an effect on her, and it made her sort of alienate herself…but that was by how “others” outside her family and society made her feel. She felt like she was the black sheep. We NEVER made a distinction between her and the rest of us, but that's how she sometimes felt being the only brown-skinned child out of four children mothered by a light skinned woman.

A couple of years ago, My brown skinned sister had to pull me out of a room at my cousin’s house one Thanksgiving because my cousin’s in-laws were there and the mother-in-law had the audacity to ask if we all were really sisters and brother?!! I was so hot I turned red and snapped at an older lady, which is something that I had never done. Thank God my grandmother was not in there to hear that one!!!

But yeah, the video was a tad bit one-sided. But then again, women have issues with each other period!! That's a whole other topic...but just in case you don't know about the Willie Lynch letters, look it up...it explains a lot about our psychological state as a race. Also call this number and listen to this 4 minute recording...404-419-6030.

2:35 PM  
Blogger jendayi said...

As another light-skinned sister, I can say that I identify with TC and lil big sis. It would be interesting to see a documentary or a short case study on race coming from all spectrums. It is absolutely true that we light-skinned and red bones, have a whole different set of issues. I definitely remember the serious talk my parents had with me when they warned me that I would be perceived as easy and stupid because of my skin color. I would like to reiterate though that we all have the same struggle. Like TC said, "different route on the same racism highway". We're all on the same highway and that's unfortunate, but it could be a very powerful thing as well if we choose to make it into one. There's no better word for what we need to do than UNITE. Feel me?

6:18 PM  

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