The topic I have selected is Colorism
Banks, Taunya L. "Colorism: a Darker Shade of Pale." Ucla Law Review. 47.6 (2000). Print.
Content Edit for Colorism
editHere is a couple of sentences I would like to add to the colorism Wikipedia page in terms of the effects that globalization has on colorism.
Colorism has become an issue that is seeing increases all over the world in countries such as the Philippines, Africa, Latin America, etc. due to advancing technologies and globalization. For example, in the Philippines which was once colonized by European Spaniards, their contemporary culture values American ideals of beauty, in this case lighter skin and larger eyes. These US images of white beauty, white heroes, and fair actors and actresses are exported to countries like the Philippines, Korea, and Saudi Arabia and in turn to meet these ideals undergo skin bleaching, eye lid surgeries, etc. in order to ascertain this lighter skin, "mestiza" look that is valued in a large part of the Western world, (Hunter, 247).
Citation: Hunter, Margaret (2007). The Persistant Problem of Colorism: Skintone, Status, and Inequality. Blackwell publishing, Ltd.
http://www.mills.edu/academics/faculty/soc/mhunter/The%20Persistent%20Problem%20of%20Colorism.pdf
Annotated Bibliography
editHi everyone, Here are a few sources I will be researching to add to the Wikipedia page on Colorism. I will be trying to focus on the globalization of colorism through media, as well as a more in depth look at the effects and history of colorism in Asian and Latino countries.
Annotated Bibliography
Banks, Taunya L. "Colorism: a Darker Shade of Pale." UCLA Law Review. 47.6 (2000). Print.'Bold text'
This article addresses the origin of colorism, studies done in regards to colorism, and the implications of colorism in our society. The author’s argument is to suggest that skin tone discrimination against dark skinned but not light-skinned blacks constitutes as a form of race-based discrimination, especially in terms of employment discrimination. The word “mulatto” dating back to the Reconstruction era was the first real word to address color bias within the white community. Whites tended to view mulattoes as more intelligent than blacks but not equal of Caucasians. Historians suggest that after the end of slavery light-skinned blacks had more economic advantage over dark-skinned blacks because they had accumulated more skills. Lighter skin tone suggests likeness and proximity to whites; have more access to resources that racial barriers deny to the subordinate race as a whole. The article discusses specific court cases involved with colorism and the different outcomes. The article also addresses the implications of colorism and how that leads to skin bleaching products, advertisements, commercials in black based magazines and programming. The author gives the idea that race is a fluid structure due to colorism. This source would be good to expound on the origins of colorism in the Wikipedia project, give support to the theory of colorism by providing examples of court cases that have taken place in the U.S., and address the implications and concerns that the affected racial group has towards the idea of light-skinned preference.
Bray, Marianne. “Skin Deep: Dying to be white.” CNN.com: World. http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/east/05/13/asia.whitening/. May 15, 2002.
The CNN article discusses the Asian trend of whitening skin and the dangers of the skin bleaching products Asian women are using in order to achieve the preferred pale skin color. The article addresses how Asian media features light skinned Asian models in magazines, on billboards, commercials, etc. Through the media Asian bleaching products are being promoted to young women along with the notion that lighter is better. The article also takes a look at the historic aspect of bleaching the skin in Asian countries like China and India. This article would serve to add to the Wikipedia page on colorism because it would give more insight to the Asian colorism epidemic and the dangers that Asian countries have encountered with the skin bleaching products.
Charles, Christopher A. D. "Skin Bleaching and the Prestige Complexion of Sexual Attraction." Sexuality & Culture. 15.4 (2011): 375-390. Print.
The article’s focus is on the sexual attraction and motivation for skin bleaching, specifically in Jamaica and how it was derived from the British who colonized there, but more importantly it addresses skin-lightening techniques and the global phenomenon of skin bleaching to become more sexually attractive. This article argues that a lighter skin color is superior and deemed sexier than dark skin. The article gives an overview of the history of colorism and the accepted definition of the term. The author then addresses the practice of skin bleaching and the reasons Jamaicans use skin bleaching products. The article goes on to describe the sexual attraction towards those with lighter skin and the reasons men prefer a lighter skinned sexual partners and/or wife. For example, there is a social importance of brown skin versus black skin; a positive sense of self is derived from a lighter complexion. The article would be a great addition to the Wikipedia ‘Colorism’ page because it gives a historical argument that the colonization had a great deal to do with the pursuit of lighter skin and also addresses a specific drive for lighter skin, which is to be sexually attractive to men and the reasons why lighter skin is more sexually appealing.
Harrison, Matthew S. “The Often Un-discussed “ism” in America’s Work Force.” The Jury Expert (2010) 22:1: 67-77. http://www.thejuryexpert.com/wp-content/uploads/HarrisonTJEJan2010.pdf.
This journal article addresses colorism in the workplace and the media related implications that are associated with it. The article discusses the specific Eurocentric physical traits that the media portrays influence employers to look for these traits in minorities when they are hiring. Such traits include: as eye shape, skin color, nose shape, etc. What the author argues is that this distorted representation is then translated into the workplace. The author gives specific examples of media texts in which dark skinned is at a disadvantage (i.e. O.J. Simpson Time cover) and when light skinned is seen as an advantage (i.e. Vanessa Williams). The article shows the implications of colorism and suggests specific research needs to understand the persistence of colorism. This would tie into the Wikipedia article about how globalization of media texts promoting light-skinned minorities influence structures of societies globally.
Harrison, Matthew S, and Thomas, Kecia M. "The Hidden Prejudice in Selection: a Research Investigation on Skin Color Bias." Journal of Applied Social Psychology. 39.1 (2009): 134-168. Print.
As the article’s title suggests, the author’s research is on the hidden colorism found in American societal structures and the effects, which are broken down into specific sections. The first section is a brief synopsis of the history of colorism dating back to slavery and how the historical context of colorism correlates to the work environment of present day America. The author then addresses the pilot study that was conducted where participants were judged on resumes and pictures and from there gender, age, and skin color were assessed to see if that was part of the reason for hire. In terms of skin color, findings show that those of lighter complexion had higher ratings than dark skinned applicants. The findings suggest that white employers assume that the light-skinned blacks have more in common with Whites than dark-skinned blacks, therefore are more desired for employment. The article would give support to the Wikipedia page by adding to the section of ‘Studies’ done to support the theory of colorism and the importance it has in the workforce.
Hunter, Margaret. “The Persistent Problem of Colorism: Skin Tone, Status, and Inequality.” Sociology Compass 1:1 (2007): 237-254.
Hunter’s journal article on the problem of colorism discusses how other White people view people who are lighter skinned versus those who are darker skinned and the advantages that those lighter skinned minorities receive in such areas as income, marriage, education, etc. More importantly the article addresses the reason for this widespread issue of colorism: globalization. The author argues that globalization of Western media images being dispersed to countries all over the world is the reason why colorism is not only persistent, but also a continues to grow. The author also insinuates that these globalized US media images helps to sustain the multi-million dollar skin-bleaching and cosmetic surgery industry. This article would add to the Wikipedia page because it would give reasons to why colorism is seen all over the world and would discuss reasons as to how colorism fuels the global market and makes profit, which is why it still persists.
Rondilla, Joanne L, and Spickard, Paul. Is Lighter Better?: Skin-tone Discrimination Among Asian Americans. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2007. Print.
This book addresses the Asian quest to be lighter and to look Caucasian, which is a different perspective than from Latinos and Blacks. The book is divided into five chapters, the first addressing colorism in Asian Americans, then discusses why lighter skin tones are considered “better” than darker skin tones in Asian cultures, and continues on to discuss why whiter means “flawless” and” pure” to Asians than dark pigmentation. The book also delves into another beauty treatment to achieve the whiter and more American appearance: plastic surgery, which unlike skin bleaching, is a more severe approach to becoming lighter. This book gives another cultural perspective to the issue of colorism and proves that colorism is a global issue, not solely associated with Blacks or Hispanics. It will give the Wikipedia article a well rounded examination of colorism and how it touches different cultures in drastically different ways.
Staples, Brent. “As Racism Wanes, Colorism Persists.” The Board: A Blog by Editorial Writers of the New York Times. http://theboard.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/22/as-racism-wanes-colorism-persists/?_r=0 August 2008.
This New York Times blog article discusses the origins of colorism and the ongoing persistence of colorism especially in regards to findings of how Whites viewed Senate candidates and business employees of color. In the political arena, what they found once again was that Whites largely chose White opponents over Black opponents, but more importantly that when a lighter skinned black candidate opposed the darker skinned candidate the point difference was a landslide in favor of the lighter skinned candidate. When asked to rate the candidates, the polls found that lighter-skinned candidates were seen as more intelligent, trustworthy, and had more experienced than their darker-skinned counterpart. The findings in the business realm were virtually the same but also expanded to Pacific Islanders, Asians, and Hispanics. This article shows that it’s not only in entertainment, marriage, and socially that colorism is present, but all the way up the chain into our political structures. This would be added to the Wikipedia article to show just how far reaching colorism is in the U.S.
Telzer, Eva, and Garcia H. Vazquez. "Skin Color and Self-Perceptions of Immigrant and U.S.-Born Latinas." Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences. 31.3 (2009): 357-374. Print.
This article focuses on the effects of colorism on Latinas in terms of self perceptions, ethnic identity, socialization, and well being. The author suggest that colorism also affects Latinas and Latinos as it does Blacks; darker skinned Latinos are met with more discrimination than lighter skinned Latinas, which affects their psychological well-being. The article refers to racial socialization and how parents prepare their children, especially those with darker skin for the racial barriers they might meet. The author speaks of a current study that looks at immigrant born Latina college students and examines whether skin color is related to their self perceptions. Results showed that immigrants with darker skin had a more negative perception of themselves than lighter skinned immigrants. This article was an interesting addition to the Wikipedia project because it looks at a different race and suggests there are ways to combat the negative self perception through family which will benefit their well-being.
Verma, Harsh. "Skin `fairness'-Culturally Embedded Meaning and Branding Implications." Global Business Review. 12.2 (2011): 193-211. Print.
The article takes a look at the social meaning of “colorism” or “fairness of skin” from a sociological point of view. It discusses the culturally held meaning to be light skinned and the role skin color has in life and goals that one is able to achieve. The article also discusses how brands in the skin bleaching industry appropriate meaning beyond the product and tap into ideologies about fair skin and that as a result the industry continues to have a large global market profit. From research, the author arrives at the main ideologies that drive the idea that lighter is better which is that if you are fairer you feel more confident, attractive, admired, and envied. To be fair is considered ‘Godly.’ This article would be a great addition to the Wikipedia page on colorism because it will focus more on the ideologies behind colorism and how it affects one’s personal identity which is not seen in the current Wikipedia page.