Being light-skinned is better than being dark-skinned. At least this is what many people believe in the Black community and in society. Many people believe that light-skinned Black people have better lives, and Black people with darker skin have a harder time getting through life. These beliefs make the issue of colorism much harder to be overlooked. The beliefs that numerous people have are the reasons that colorism is such an issue within the Black community. Colorism means, “Prejudice or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group” (Oxford Dictionary). Colorism is an issue that is occurring all over the world and in many different cultures. It is a problem in places
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For instance, in his article “Skin Color and the Perception of Attractiveness Among African Americans,” Mark E. Hill explains, “African Americans perceive fair skin tone as a particularly feminine characteristic” (Hill). For example, based on the stereotype that light-skinned African Americans are feminine and dark-skinned African Americans are masculine, when a group of young black men of all skin tones are playing basketball or football it is usually common for the guys with the lighter skin to be chosen last because they are often believed to be “pretty boys.” This belief may begin to take a toll on the young men that are being discriminated against. Additionally, in the article “Black Identity:Shades of Beauty and Pride,” Russell, Wilson, and Hall inform, “The only quality in which the dark-skinned females were not rated lower was sense of humor, a phenomenon they labeled the ‘Whoopi Goldberg effect’” (Russell,Wilson, and Hall 26). The study was on a plethora of topics between light-skinned and dark-skinned black women and the only thing people believed women with darker skin could do better was to be funny. The study was given using only photographs and people still judged the women according to the shade of their skin. No one knew any of the women in the study, but people rated each woman based solely on their complexion. Also, in her article “Light Skin, Dark Skin:Colorism in the Black Community,” Mia Coward states, “The lighter skin children were then seen as a purer form of beauty and put on a higher pedestal than their darker counterparts” (Coward). The way that many people treat children based on their complexion can only hinder the child in the long run. Furthermore, in the article “The Paper Bag Principle: Class, Colorism, and Rumor and the Case of Black Washington, D.C.,” Jacqueline M. Moore explains,“the legendary "paper bag test" that
For instance, in his article “Skin Color and the Perception of Attractiveness Among African Americans,” Mark E. Hill explains, “African Americans perceive fair skin tone as a particularly feminine characteristic” (Hill). For example, based on the stereotype that light-skinned African Americans are feminine and dark-skinned African Americans are masculine, when a group of young black men of all skin tones are playing basketball or football it is usually common for the guys with the lighter skin to be chosen last because they are often believed to be “pretty boys.” This belief may begin to take a toll on the young men that are being discriminated against. Additionally, in the article “Black Identity:Shades of Beauty and Pride,” Russell, Wilson, and Hall inform, “The only quality in which the dark-skinned females were not rated lower was sense of humor, a phenomenon they labeled the ‘Whoopi Goldberg effect’” (Russell,Wilson, and Hall 26). The study was on a plethora of topics between light-skinned and dark-skinned black women and the only thing people believed women with darker skin could do better was to be funny. The study was given using only photographs and people still judged the women according to the shade of their skin. No one knew any of the women in the study, but people rated each woman based solely on their complexion. Also, in her article “Light Skin, Dark Skin:Colorism in the Black Community,” Mia Coward states, “The lighter skin children were then seen as a purer form of beauty and put on a higher pedestal than their darker counterparts” (Coward). The way that many people treat children based on their complexion can only hinder the child in the long run. Furthermore, in the article “The Paper Bag Principle: Class, Colorism, and Rumor and the Case of Black Washington, D.C.,” Jacqueline M. Moore explains,“the legendary "paper bag test" that