Ok, I’m really mad. I just recieved a BB broadcast and it
goes” Limited vacancies in a reputable communications firm for ladies between 20
-26,with a second class lower degree in any discipline, tall, beautiful and,
having a light skinned complexion is an added
advantage.”
I though it was just a joke, until I got confirmations that
this is true. Well, I wont dwell on the tall, beautiful…blab la bla..but
“light in complexion”?Like hello, when did skin color become a
pre-requisite for employment? I mean I have no problems with naturally light
skinned African girls, but I have a problem with our society pushing across the
message that, being light skinned means being beautiful. This craze for a light
complexion has left many women looking like
bleached whales,
just so they could measure up .Funny enough, they do get the attention they crave even at the risk of cancer and its likes.
Take a look at our society today, we are totally shunning
those characteristics which made us unique, black and proud, remember? Men have
been fine tuned to believe a light complexion woman is more attractive or
beautiful, Music videos and movies flash painfully light skinned women in our
faces, bosses believe having a light skinned completion woman in your
organization means more patronage. Churches have light complexioned girls as
ushers, events have light complexioned girls, banks have them as customer
service or marketers, even babalawo’s have them as their
personal assistants. Don’t ask how I know.
I have personally tried to change my skin color in order to
look more attractive and acceptable, not until I saw Genevieve Nnanji, Kate
Henshaw, Kelly Roland, Linda Ikeji,Agbani Darego,yes she won the Miss World
Title!! These are undoubtedly beautiful and dark skinned women who embrace their
color. Don’t they look good?
The whole counters of cosmetic stores are filled with skin
bleaching creams. Tone this, tone that. What happened to our natural Shea butter
(ori)or Vaseline…not that I would use that..lol..What happened
to loving our natural skin tone? Being proud of who we are.
But have we really sat down to think of the implication of
this on our future generations? I mean would our great grand children even know
what being black really means? Why don’t we leave the white skin to those who
really are white and those who are naturally light skinned? Why don’t be open
the doors to our dark skinned beauties? Why don’t we use them more in videos,
movies, jobs etc….I’m not dark skinned in the true sense of the word, but I must
say, I’ll choose dark chocolate any day, any time.
Africans rock. Let’s be black and proud