“She’s Cute for a Dark Skinned Girl” Posted by NayBesa (487 hits)
Ever since I was in middle school [and I say middle school because in elementary you don’t see color] people have been making statements to or around me, on the lines of “light skin is in” and “I don’t date anyone darker than my skin tone” “all dark skinned girls are ghetto” and the one that I finally experience and still has me upset about to this day [it happened like last week maybe] “your hella cute for a dark skinned girl”. Now personally I don’t know how everyone else would feel or has felt right after a male [or female] tells you that your “cute for a dark skinned girl” but personally I didn’t think anything of it at the moment, however, about five minutes later it hit me and I was highly upset. The thought of someone pretty much saying that I’m cute BUT in reality I would look better if I was light skinned, is not the business. I mean what is it in a skin tone that makes people think that you’re going to act or think a certain way, or that light skinned and pretty hair means that your a beauty queen, or top of the line model, and dark skinned with normal African American hair means that you are ugly, and will never get a man [well a good looking one anyways]. I feel that it’s a shame that African Americans can have arguments with people of different races about racism but is forever skipping over the racism within our own people. Why we have a light skinned VS dark skinned war going on I will never know. Why is it that we can ban together as a people when it comes to racism as a group but we can’t get ourselves together as a people and get the racism that we have within our self’s together. I don’t understand how we can work on racism in the world but not have our own racism under control. People always wana say that they are not racist but, if you’re making judgments about a culture or even a skin tone that means that you’re racist against that cutler or skin tone. And to be racist against a skin tone is just plain sad because that means for the most part you are having racism on your own people, your own cutler, and your own kind that has had the same struggles that your ancestors have had, so what’s the point in having judgments’ about a certain skin tone Now I don’t want for people to get me wrong, because there is nothing wrong with having a certain attraction that mainly lies on one skin tone or another; there’s nothing wrong with that at all, its just like how some males like “thick girls” and others like “skinny girls”. HOWEVER when you get to a point when you start automatically believing that one is better than the other, and thinking that one has more class then the other, YA that’s a problem, and it needs to get checked ASAP like a judge that lets a serial killer out on early bail. Coming from a brown sugar complexion point of view, I feel that my skin is beautiful, and the fact that “dark” skinned girls come in so many colors is a beautiful thing. We are all wonderful as woman and as a people; our strength is amazingly passionate and will never fade away. If we could just come together and see that skin tone does not make you who you are and that being true to yourself is what makes you who you are, maybe just maybe the ignorant comments of “your hella cute for a dark skinned girl” will begin to dwindle away slowly like the idea of us never having a African American president. Its going to take some work, sometime, and some patience, but guess what we do it.
“Brown skin, you know I love your brown skinI cant tell where yours begins, I cant tell where mine ends Brown skin, up against my brown skin Need some every now and thenoh hey Skin so brown, lips so round Baby how can I be down? Beautiful mahogany, you make me feel like a queen Tell me whats that thing you do that makes me wanna get next to you, yeah” India Arie “Brown Skin”
Good read, Anita. I love that India Arie song, too. It's a shame that we still haven't embraced ourselves enough, loved ourselves enough to get past skin color. Sigh. When will this tired argument be laid to rest? Walk tall, my sister.
Monday, March 15th 2010 at 7:18PM
Wyteria Jacobo
Read Dr. Joy DeGruy Leary's book, "The Posttraumatic Slave Snyndrome" where she talks about remnants of slavery in contemporary society. The light skinned is better notion was started in slavery (when slaves were separated by skin color) and has been passed down from generation to generation. We as black people have embraced and perpetuated the notion that anything dark is negative or bad, and anything light or white is good and acceptable. It is as prevalent today as it was during slavery. I too grew up hearing remarks about dark skinned girls who are cute to be so dark and so on and so on. It gets tired and ole! I don't see an end to any of this. We as black people have been so damaged, so very injured by the institution of slavery that it may take many, many more generations before we begin to see change.
Monday, March 15th 2010 at 11:48PM
Leslie Morris
Thanks Sista, This subject just reached out to me when I read and I thought I would pass it along. I fit in just the opposite category. Im light skinned and went through the same things my brown skinned sistas went through, so I know how she feels. I would like to let her know, Prejudice comes in all colors.
Thursday, March 18th 2010 at 2:24PM
anita moore
