And I began to think about how I’d approach colorism with my own daughter. The nurse’s comments hit me like a ton of bricks. After just having an emergency c-section post 36 hours of labor, all you can comment on is my precious baby’s skin tone?
“From the earlobes, I can tell she’s going to stay pretty light… how’d you two make such a light skin baby anyway?” I was infuriated with her comments. When I gave birth to my daughter five years ago, I was shocked when the first words uttered from the attending nurse was about my daughter’s complexion. Being the lightest of all her siblings, she told me that despite unwanted attention because of her complexion, there were also times when she didn’t feel quite “Black enough.” And it wasn’t until I was much older that I learned how my mom felt about her complexion, too. As a young child, I deduced that lighter skin – because its proximity to whiteness – had more value.Īlthough my mother never really directly addressed colorism, she did her best to make me feel like I was worthy, even when the outside world didn’t. Whether it was a sly comment about me “looking nothing like mom, but more like daddy,” or requests to stay out of the midday summer sun – without anyone muttering the word colorism, it didn’t take me long to figure out what was happening. I was made aware of the differences in our skin tones early on from family, friends, and even strangers.
My mother is light skin – and I am a deep russet-brown. Growing up, I witnessed colorism firsthand. However, I learned early on how the emotional and psychological battles over complexion have been used to divide us. There is a spectrum of skin tones in my own family – from the deepest mahogany to almond beige and everything in between – every last one uniquely beautiful. No matter the platform in which this conversation ensues, it’s clear that colorism is a deeply rooted construct unwillingly hurled upon us long, long ago.ĭiscrimination and prejudice solely based on skin tone stretches across diasporas and throughout the world – but like most Black Americans, it is an experience that truly hits home. Even more recently, Tracee Elis Ross’ Elle Magazine’s State of Black Beauty cover sparked virtual debate about the lack of media representation of darker skin Black women with kinkier hair types. This, on the heels of a heated discussion on Jada Pinkett-Smith’s Red Table Talk, which deep dived into the complexities of our skin tones. Here Wee Read Founder Charnaie Gordon’s children (Photo courtesy of Charnaie Gordon)Ī few months ago, Twitter went ablaze on the topic of colorism.
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