Growing up in a Post-Apartheid South Africa, the topic of
race has confronted me in every aspect of my life. But recently, my fellow
“black” young South Africans have moved beyond the colours of black and white
and rather to the shades of black.
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This is rooted in the idea of Colourism.
This, by definition, is a discrimination of African Americans based on skin colour,
usually done subconsciously. Colourism disadvantages dark-skinned people, while
privileging those with lighter skin, within ones community.Although, the concept of colourism developed in the African
American community, I have noticed that it has trickled into the South African
community, especially amongst the youth. A recent trend that I have seen within
my social circle and the “Black” youth is a discrimination against the darker shades
of African woman and an admiration of lighter skinned African women.
So many young people (many male) have taken to the social
media site- Twitter, to publicly declare their dislike of dark skinned girls
with tweets such as- “I swear #DarkSkinnedGirls be looking mad scary” or “Dark
skinned b*tches must fear us”… while on the other hand, light skinned girls
(also known as Yellowbones) are admired with tweets such as - “I automatically
love all #YellowBones” or “Don’t get me started on God’s gift to earth
#LightSkinnedGirls”.
As a darker-skinned young woman, it has puzzled and
frightened me to see such a trend occur in our country, considering the wounds
that were, not so long ago, left by the racial discrimination during Apartheid
in South Africa.
I have tried to figure out what is to blame for this form of
discrimination and all I can think of is subconscious conditioning or pure
ignorance.
Subconscious conditioning would refer to the things that we
have subconsciously been taught growing up...
Firstly, with reference to colours- Lighter colours such as
white are associated with pureness, innocence, happiness, perfection and that
is why a bride wears a white wedding
dress…but on the contrary the colour black has a negative connotation
and is associated with evil, sadness, grief and is therefore the colour worn to
a funeral.
So, I guess this could be one of the reasons why people
would choose, subconsciously, to associate beauty with something that is closer
to the colour white rather than black…
Secondly, the things you are told while growing up... I
remember from an early age, my mother would often tell me to stay out of the
sun, not because of its harmful rays but purely because it would result in me
becoming darker, …which I now I question, would that have been so wrong? Would I have been less beautiful dark skinned?
Lastly , the images that surround us-it is rare for us to
see beautiful dark skinned women on the covers of magazines or play positive,
empowered lead roles in the film or music industry. It is as though, a handful
of people have decided that light skinned women are the most attractive women
and should therefore be the “ideal’ image of beauty in society. Because of
this, women have, by the aid of the beauty industry, been encouraged to forgo
their dark skin with the help of skin bleach products or complexion lightening
creams.
People forget that the human mind is so complex that it can shape a person’s perception of the world without them even knowing it.
I wish that the youth could realize that their “preference”
to find beauty in light skinned women is not purely their choice but a choice
that is highly influenced by others.
Society needs to realize that discrimination against darker
skinned women is subconsciously affecting the way that they not only view
themselves but their worth. It is
affecting how generations to follow will view themselves.
Many of these young people forget that thousands of people
have died to remove the racial discrimination between the different races in
South Africa and that colourism is indeed bringing back the social implications
of discrimination.
I am hoping that this trend will quickly disappear, not only
from my twitter timeline but from the ideas and opinions of the black youth.
I pray that dark skinned women will not let the ignorance
and ideas of others, influence the way that they view themselves. I want them
to know that somebody out there thinks that they are the most beautiful being
in the universe and that although your dark skin is beautiful, it is nothing
but merely a layer of skin.
I hope that people will take more control on the extent of
which people and the media influence their perceptions. May people take more responsibility
on shaping their own values and ideas.
I cannot wait for the day when the shades of colour whether
white; black or even the shades in-between do not matter in our country. A day when when a person’s beauty is determined, not on the artificial layers of their physical attributes but, on their actions that bring positive change to society.
So go on, find and embrace your own beauty...
A beauty that goes far beyond your own self,
A beauty that brings change to the world,
A beauty that belongs to nobody but you!
