Post by rainbowbridge14 on May 15, 2017 17:22:48 GMT -5
This affects me as well. I have lighter skin and don't present as stereotypically Native American. I know that this provides me with enormous privelege, especially compared to my husband and his family who are much darker.
It also has another dimension for Native people in that the less we look stereotypically Native the more we are considered to be inauthentic or fake by society. People see lighter skin as a sign that my people have dissapeared or aren't "real" Indians and who therefore don't deserve things like having our treaty rights respected.
My H is dark skinned and I'm not sure how to describe my skin color. It's like a milk chocolate color. I don't consider myself light skinned, but I am lighter than him. My mom's family wasn't happy about me marrying him because of his dark skin. My mom's family is mostly Arawak Indian, with some Afro Jamaican, some white, and some Asian Indian. Most of them are light skinned. I still married him, but it did upset me that they felt that way. My mom told me that my aunt was talking about how my DD is so beautiful and "light." This made me mad. H's sister obviously bleaches her skin and is pretty open about it on social media. It makes me sad that not everyone can love themselves the way they are. It makes me sad that people are still thinking light skin=pretty.
1st BFP: 07/24/2014 Due: 04/08/2015 MC: 08/31/2014 2nd BFP 10/22/2014 Due: 07/06/2015 Surprise preemie born 4/25/2015 at 29 weeks and 5 days My Rainbow is Here!
Post by puffandstuff on May 17, 2017 9:20:29 GMT -5
I'm brown skinned and grew up in a predominately white area. The light skinned or biracial girls got the most attention. I didn't even have a boyfriend in high school. I went to an HBCU and it was a whole different story. Skin tone wasn't as big of an issue there. My children are both light skinned. The hospital staff put them both down as Caucasian.
At this point in my life. I don't care if you are lighter or darker. I don't think either makes you prettier. I've noticed in TV shows that the darker skinned women are portrayed as harsher, mean and more masculine. We all remember the Clark Doll experiment.
I'm light skinned with light eyes and long hair. Growing up, people always said "Oh you must be mixed" and it always puzzled me. We come in all shades, black girls can grow long hair wtf. I was also picked on a lot because apparently I "thought I was all that" and was "stuck up". As a child it made me angry but as an adult looking back it makes me sad that there was this kind of self-hatred that lead those people to treat me a certain way. I didn't think I was better than them for having light skin and long hair, but something that had been drilled in them made them assume I did. My 15 year old has my exact coloring and she experiences the same things now.
I had her watch the documentaries Light Girls and Dark Girls with me so she could learn some of the history behind it and how deeply ingrained this way of thinking is into the black community. I think it really opened up her eyes and made her view things from a totally different perspective.
I get soooo annoyed when people (esp. Family) make reference to my daughter's complexion and hair texture. My stepsister even had the nerve to joke "you sure the clinic used the right sperm? My niece started calling her "Reagie with the good hair" (thanks Bey) Yes, my husband and I are on the more brown end. Yes the child is a bit lighter and has a looser spiral curl. But how hard is it to look across the spectrum of our family? My mother's the complexion of an IHOP pancake! As are three out of my four grandparents. It's called a diaspora for a reason. I think it's awesome that we are so varied. Fuckin Willie Lynch
I'm light skinned with light eyes and long hair. Growing up, people always said "Oh you must be mixed" and it always puzzled me. We come in all shades, black girls can grow long hair wtf. I was also picked on a lot because apparently I "thought I was all that" and was "stuck up". As a child it made me angry but as an adult looking back it makes me sad that there was this kind of self-hatred that lead those people to treat me a certain way. I didn't think I was better than them for having light skin and long hair, but something that had been drilled in them made them assume I did. My 15 year old has my exact coloring and she experiences the same things now.
I had her watch the documentaries Light Girls and Dark Girls with me so she could learn some of the history behind it and how deeply ingrained this way of thinking is into the black community. I think it really opened up her eyes and made her view things from a totally different perspective.
OMG this has been my experience. I'm either put on a pedestal (so gross), or people assume I'm a stuck-up bitch. It's infuriating. You wouldn't believe how many guys have "complimented" me by mentioning how light I am. That shit is not flattering, it's insulting. I once made a comment about a certain color looking great against a friend's absolutely GORGEOUS chocolate skin, and she was insulted. I wanted to cry for her.
I often feel guilty, because it might be irritating for me, but for darker women, it goes beyond annoying comments or the occasional shade. The shit they have to put up with, especially within our own community, is awful. I mean, I remember when the worst insult was a "you so black..." joke. I know I'm privileged, and it hurts my heart. Save
I told my family whoever starts that "what color are her ears and cuticles" shit when they are visiting me and the new baby in the hospital they will be asked to leave. Let my baby live a couple of days before she is being judged based on her skin color. 🙄
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