By Tanya Maria GolashBoza Colorism Colorism refers to howwithin a racial group people are ranked as more deserving and superior based on their phenotype physical appearance This could include shade of skin color the shape of ones eyes nose the kind of hair and the color of o ID: 403501
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Slide1
Chapter Five: Colorism and Skin-Color Stratification
By Tanya Maria Golash-Boza
Slide2
Colorism
Colorism: refers to how—within a racial group— people are ranked as more deserving and superior based on their phenotype (physical appearance). This could include shade of skin color, the shape of one’s eyes, nose, the kind of hair, and the color of one’s eyes. Slide3
In Harlem in the 1920s,
the black elite were
disproportionately
light-skinned.
p. 127: Photographs and Prints Division,
Schomburg
Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden
FoundationsSlide4
Aspects of Colorism
Colorism does not necessarily indicate a desire to be white, however.
It may indicate a desire to match the ideal form of beauty within that group which may have been influenced by white standards of beauty. Slide5
Skin-Color Stratification
Groups have an internal group scaling system, such as that lighter skinned people are seen as more capable and beautiful and darker skinned members are not provided as many opportunities. For blacks, this has an origin in slavery where lighter skinned blacks worked as slaves in other places other than the heavy labor of the fields. Slide6
Over 100 social categories
can be identified in these
casta
paintings from the
Spanish colonies
.
p. 128:
Las castas
. Museo Nacional del Virreinato, Tepotzotlán,
MexicoSlide7
Across a Range of Ethnoracial Groups
This preference for light skin is present in Latina, South Asian, and other Asian ethnoracial groups.
This is not just a phenomenon for preference in beauty but translates into everyday lived opportunities. Slide8
Across a Range of Ethnoracial Groups
Women all over the world use products to lighten their skin through skin bleaching.
They use these products for different reasons.
Some of these products are harmful to a woman’s health.
For some the product is sold as if it would make a woman more attractive and a good marriage prospect.Slide9
Material Rewards of Light Skin and “White” Features
“Having light skin has real, material rewards
for Latinos in the United
States in terms of education and income.” (p. 133)
Additionally, in another study Latinas with light skin had higher rates of marriage than darker skinned Latinas.
Some Asian women get eyelid reduction surgery.Companies that do business in more than one country also advertise these products in a way that favors white appearances. Slide10
Skin-whitening creams
for various parts of the
body are widely available
around the world. A new
area of product
development in Thailandand other Easterncountries is vaginal
whitening creams, such as
Lactacyd
White.
p. 130: ©
epa
european
pressphoto
agency
b.v
./
AlamySlide11
Figure 5-1.
Percentage
of Women
in
African Cities
and
Countries Who
Use Skin-
Bleaching Products
In many African
cities, over
half of women
report using skin-bleaching products
.
Source: Lewis et al. (2011
);
Kpanake
, Munoz
Sastre
,
and Mullet
(2009).
Figure 5-1: Lewis et al 2011;
Kpanake
,
Saster
, and Mullet 2010Slide12
Material Rewards of Light Skin
“Beauty divides women through competition and diverts their attention to their physical appearance and away from other oppressive forces in their lives.”
(p. 139)
The “beauty queue” notion refers to a system that enables lighter-skinned women to have more resources than darker-skinned women. Slide13
Beyoncé on the cover of
People
magazine as the
“World’s Most Beautiful
Woman.” Many prominent
female African American
stars are very light-skinned.
p. 139: AP Photo/PeopleSlide14
The Costs of Light Skin
“Colorism, it turns out, is a manifestation of racism that further splits fractured groups into an internal hierarchy related to color. At the same time, since race is closely tied to identity, there are costs to being perceived as too light or, especially too white.” (p. 143)Slide15
Conclusion
“Physical attractiveness serves as capital for both men and women, but patriarchy has created a situation in which women must depend more than men on their physical appearance.” (p. 143)
Therefore, women may turn to products or surgery to make them more presentable , but not necessarily to make themselves appear “white.”