Ahhhh...the struggle of this bullshit.
I was eavesdropping on my dad and mom's conversation and almost broke out in pure laughter because he said something that really made me feel like he's not quite in touch with today's society and the things that are happening in 2014.
He said that there are so many "pro-black" folk that always talk about "I'm black this...I'm black that" and don't even realize that they probably have so much other stuff going on in their blood stream. He based that off of some of the findings my family has come up on with our gene pool. My sister is researching all this family tree stuff with actual records because she's genuinely interested in piecing together a puzzle of our family roots. She also did a DNA test to trace our roots too.
Anyway, his statement in my opinion would have been more valid in 1990-1995 possibly because the Spike Lee movement was alive and real. Lots of inspiration from the Black Panther side of life when it came to hip-hop culture and images you saw.
But NOW?! Naaaaaaaaaa...
I mean, I grew up hearing folk talk about how they had "indian in their family"...blah blah blah and with some folk, might have been true. Honestly, there was a great deal of interracial (maybe not dating but) MATING back in the day that resulted in folks being a swirl of ethnicities.
My point (however) was that commercially in the hip-hop mainstream world...who is embracing blackness? We have these light skinned versus dark skinned conversations (I know some is meant to be funny...I'm not talking about those as much as the UNDERTONE). I had a friend of mine tell me her boyfriend doesn't talk to dark skinned women and I've seen plenty of convo in person and offline reflecting that mentality. You see mostly fair complexioned women as the symbol of beauty in commercial settings (TV, videos, ads, celebrity girlfriends, etc.). Most of us who have eyesight have known that one for a while.
I also remember my ex-boyfriend getting really upset when we talked about who was darker complected between my oldest daughter compared to his younger sister. Like, he REALLY got offended at the fact that I thought my daughter was lighter than his sister. I wasn't saying it to shade his sister but he reacted like I was. Crazy right?!
My question is WTF is wrong with being Black? WTF is wrong with claiming AFRICA?! This beautiful landscape of sun warmed flesh, motherly physiques, plump lips, beautiful patterns of cloth being worn and wearing that heritage with pride and happiness? There are so many people who will be so quick to point out another ethnicity tied to them, I'm used to hearing it now. Nothing wrong with acknowledging your ties, but there IS a problem with Africa not being enough if it's dominant in your bloodstream.
How is it that I truly NEVER looked at a dark complected individual and thought their color made them look any better or worse? Call me an insane heffa but I look at FEATURES, whether you have acne, crooked nose, nice groomed face, you know...irrational shit like that. ((Rolls eyes))
Do you know how many busted ass people I've seen in ALL COLORS, heritages, walks of life, persuasions, etc?! TONS!!!!
I wish some Black people who are brainwashed into this way of thinking would see this is a generational ignorance that was conditioned into their minds. Please read, "Willie Lynch Letter".
If you want to joke and call somebody "Light Bright, Mellow Yellow, Hershey Kiss", all that is fun and jokes and should be fine as long as everyone is laughing. But I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the ones who deliberately believe their fairness of skin makes them any better or any color difference for that matter makes a person more desirable.
All colors of the rainbow can be attractive or repulsive in my eyes.
I sincerely swear on everything I love those discriminations and hang ups about color were NOT something in my mind until probably pre-teen years when I started hearing people say little dumb crap about someone's complexion. You could call it sheltered or naive but really, I think the same for someone who holds complexion as a standard for attractiveness. It's crazy to me when there are so many snap dragons and Mighty Joe Youngs of ALL COLORS!!!
AFRICA IS EXOTIC TOO! Just like a mixture of ethnicities and just like various areas of the world. We need to start embracing the beauty of the Black race and stop being so ignorant towards one another.
Exhibit A
Exhibit B
Exhibit C
Exhibit D
Exhibit E
Exhibit F
Exhibit G
Last Exhibit
I'll rest my case. This isn't to criticize or to complain, so for all the folks who want to say I'm just another black woman complaining, criticizing, blah, blah, blah, please get over yourselves and realize it's a very real situation about the self-perception issues our race has. It is what it is. I don't write to BS around the truth.
