# data[].attributes.body
1. Peer review evaluation
2. Outline and Draft(s)
3. Colourism
4. Anti-Blackness
5. Skin whitening
6. Critical Race Theory
7. Social Dominance Theory
8. Pre European Contact and Post-Colonial Colourism

# data[].attributes.headline
When and How Subordinate Performance Leads to Abusive Supervision: A Social Dominance Perspective (Khan et al., 2016)

# data[].attributes.subject
When and How Subordinate Performance Leads to Abusive Supervision: A Social Dominance Perspective (Khan et al., 2016)

# data[].attributes.headline
Prejudice and Discrimination on the Basis of Social Dominance Theory (Yayak, 2017)

# data[].attributes.subject
Prejudice and Discrimination on the Basis of Social Dominance Theory (Yayak, 2017)

# data[].attributes.headline
Social Dominance Theory: Explorations in the Psychology of Oppression (Sibley et al., 2017)

# data[].attributes.subject
Social Dominance Theory: Explorations in the Psychology of Oppression (Sibley et al., 2017)

# data[].attributes.headline
A Comparison of Social Dominance Theory and System Justification: The Role of Social Status in 19 Nations (Vargas-Salfate et al., 2018)

# data[].attributes.subject
A Comparison of Social Dominance Theory and System Justification: The Role of Social Status in 19 Nations (Vargas-Salfate et al., 2018)

# data[].attributes.headline
Social Dominance Orientation (Kleppestø et al., 2019)

# data[].attributes.subject
Social Dominance Orientation (Kleppestø et al., 2019)

# data[].attributes.headline
Introduction to Critical Race Theory (Delgado, 2001)

# data[].attributes.subject
Introduction to Critical Race Theory (Delgado, 2001)

# data[].attributes.headline
Critical Race Theory: Its Origins, History, and Importance to the Discourses and Rhetorics of Race (Martinez 2014)

# data[].attributes.subject
Critical Race Theory: Its Origins, History, and Importance to the Discourses and Rhetorics of Race (Martinez 2014)

# data[].attributes.headline
Where is the Racial Theory in Critical Race Theory?:A constructive criticism of the Crits (Cabrera, 2018)

# data[].attributes.subject
Where is the Racial Theory in Critical Race Theory?:A constructive criticism of the Crits (Cabrera, 2018)

# data[].attributes.headline
Can You Really Measure That? Combining Critical Race Theory and Quantitative Methods Sablan (2018)

# data[].attributes.subject
Can You Really Measure That? Combining Critical Race Theory and Quantitative Methods Sablan (2018)

# data[].attributes.headline
Critical race theory as a tool for understanding poor engagement along the HIV care continuum among African American/Black and Hispanic persons living with HIV in the United States: a qualitative exploration (Freeman et al., 2017)

# data[].attributes.subject
Critical race theory as a tool for understanding poor engagement along the HIV care continuum among African American/Black and Hispanic persons living with HIV in the United States: a qualitative exploration (Freeman et al., 2017)

# data[].attributes.headline
Critical race theory and the teacher education curriculum: challenging understandings of racism, whiteness, and white supremacy (Aronson & Meyers, 2020)

# data[].attributes.subject
Critical race theory and the teacher education curriculum: challenging understandings of racism, whiteness, and white supremacy (Aronson & Meyers, 2020)

# data[].attributes.headline
Science Identity among Latinx Students in the Biomedical Sciences: The Role of a Critical Race Theory–Informed Undergraduate Research Experience (Camacho, 2021)

# data[].attributes.subject
Science Identity among Latinx Students in the Biomedical Sciences: The Role of a Critical Race Theory–Informed Undergraduate Research Experience (Camacho, 2021)

# data[].attributes.headline
The multimodal construction of race: a review of critical race theory research  (Mills, 2018)

# data[].attributes.subject
The multimodal construction of race: a review of critical race theory research  (Mills, 2018)

# data[].attributes.headline
The Causes, Contributors, and Consequences of Colorism Among Various Cultures (Rahman, 2020)

# data[].attributes.subject
The Causes, Contributors, and Consequences of Colorism Among Various Cultures (Rahman, 2020)

# data[].attributes.headline
WHAT ARE THE FACTORS  OF COLORISM AMONGST AFRICAN ORISM AMONGST AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN; AND HOW DOES THIS AFFECT THE LIVESOF AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN? (Sumo, 2019)

# data[].attributes.subject
WHAT ARE THE FACTORS  OF COLORISM AMONGST AFRICAN ORISM AMONGST AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN; AND HOW DOES THIS AFFECT THE LIVESOF AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN? (Sumo, 2019)

# data[].attributes.headline
Skin Color and Colorism: Global Research, Concepts, and Measurement (Dixon & Telles, 2017)

# data[].attributes.subject
Skin Color and Colorism: Global Research, Concepts, and Measurement (Dixon & Telles, 2017)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Critical Race Theory (1970s-present)
Summary:
This resource will help you begin the process of understanding literary theory and schools of criticism and how they are used in the academy.

Introduction

Critical Race Theory, or CRT, is a theoretical and interpretive mode that examines the appearance of race and racism across dominant cultural modes of expression. In adopting this approach, CRT scholars attempt to understand how victims of systemic racism are affected by cultural perceptions of race and how they are able to represent themselves to counter prejudice.

Closely connected to such fields as philosophy, history, sociology, and law, CRT scholarship traces racism in America through the nation's legacy of slavery, the Civil Rights Movement, and recent events. In doing so, it draws from work by writers like Sojourner Truth, Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Du Bois, Martin Luther King, Jr., and others studying law, feminism, and post-structuralism. CRT developed into its current form during the mid-1970s with scholars like Derrick Bell, Alan Freeman, and Richard Delgado, who responded to what they identified as dangerously slow progress following Civil Rights in the 1960s.

Prominent CRT scholars like Kimberlé Crenshaw, Mari Matsuda, and Patricia Williams share an interest in recognizing racism as a quotidian component of American life (manifested in textual sources like literature, film, law, etc). In doing so, they attempt to confront the beliefs and practices that enable racism to persist while also challenging these practices in order to seek liberation from systemic racism.

As such, CRT scholarship also emphasizes the importance of finding a way for diverse individuals to share their experiences. However, CRT scholars do not only locate an individual's identity and experience of the world in his or her racial identifications, but also their membership to a specific class, gender, nation, sexual orientation, etc. They read these diverse cultural texts as proof of the institutionalized inequalities racialized groups and individuals experience every day.

As Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic explain in their introduction to the third edition of Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge, "Our social world, with its rules, practices, and assignments of prestige and power, is not fixed; rather, we construct with it words, stories and silence. But we need not acquiesce in arrangements that are unfair and one-sided. By writing and speaking against them, we may hope to contribute to a better, fairer world" (3). In this sense, CRT scholars seek tangible, real-world ends through the intellectual work they perform. This contributes to many CRT scholars' emphasis on social activism and transforming everyday notions of race, racism, and power.

More recently, CRT has contributed to splinter groups focused on Asian American, Latino, and Indian racial experiences.

Common Questions

What is the significance of race in contemporary American society?

Where, in what ways, and to what ends does race appear in dominant American culture and shape the ways we interact with one another?

What types of texts and other cultural artifacts reflect dominant culture's perceptions of race?

How can scholars convey that racism is a concern that affects all members of society?

How does racism continue to function as a persistent force in American society?

How can we combat racism to ensure that all members of American society experience equal representation and access to fundamental rights?

How can we accurately reflect the experiences of victims of racism?

Why Use This Approach?

As we can see, adopting a CRT approach to literature or other modes of cultural expression includes much more than simply identifying race, racism, and racialized characters in fictional works. Rather, it (broadly) emphasizes the importance of examining and attempting to understand the socio-cultural forces that shape how we and others perceive, experience, and respond to racism. These scholars treat literature, legal documents, and other cultural works as evidence of American culture's collective values and beliefs. In doing so, they trace racism as a dually theoretical and historical experience that affects all members of a community regardless of their racial affiliations or identifications.

Most CRT scholarship attempts to demonstrate not only how racism continues to be a pervasive component throughout dominant society, but also why this persistent racism problematically denies individuals many of the constitutional freedoms they are otherwise promised in the United States' governing documents. This enables scholars to locate how texts develop in and through the cultural contexts that produced them, further demonstrating how pervasive systemic racism truly is. CRT scholars typically focus on both the evidence and the origins of racism in American culture, seeking to eradicate it at its roots.

Additionally, because CRT advocates attending to the various components that shape individual identity, it offers a way for scholars to understand how race interacts with other identities like gender and class. As scholars like Crenshaw and Willams have shown, CRT scholarship can and should be amenable to adopting and adapting theories from related fields like women's studies, feminism, and history. In doing so, CRT has evolved over the last decades to address the various concerns facing individuals affected by racism.

Interestingly, CRT scholarship does not only draw attention to and address the concerns of individual affected by racism, but also those who perpetrate and are seemingly unaffected by racial prejudice. Scholars like W.E.B. Du Bois, Peggy McIntosh, Cheryl Harris, and George Lipsitz discuss white privilege and notions of whiteness throughout history to better understand how American culture conceptualizes race (or the seeming absence of race).

Important Terms

White privilege: Discussed by Lipsitz, Lee, Harris, McIntosh, and other CRT scholars, white privilege refers to the various social, political, and economic advantages white individuals experience in contrast to non-white citizens based on their racial membership. These advantages can include both obvious and subtle differences in access to power, social status, experiences of prejudice, educational opportunities, and much more. For CRT scholars, the notion of white privilege offers a way to discuss dominant culture's tendency to normalize white individuals' experiences and ignore the experiences of non-whites. Fields such as CRT and whiteness studies have focused explicitly on the concept of white privilege to understand how racism influences white people.

Microaggressions: Microaggressions refer to the seemingly minute, often unconscious, quotidian instances of prejudice that collectively contribute to racism and the subordination of racialized individuals by dominant culture. Peggy Davis discusses how legal discourse participates in and can counteract the effects of microaggressions.

Institutionalized Racism: This concept, discussed extensively by Camara Phyllis Jones, refers to the systemic ways dominant society restricts a racialized individual or group's access to opportunities. These inequalities, which include an individual's access to material conditions and power, are not only deeply imbedded in legal institutions, but have been absorbed into American culture to such a degree that they are often invisible or easily overlooked.

Social construction: In the context of CRT, "social construction" refers to the notion that race is a product of social thought and relations. It suggests that race is a product of neither biology nor genetics, but is rather a social invention.

Intersectionality and anti-essentialism: These terms refer to the notion that one aspect of an individual's identity does not necessarily determine other categories of membership. As Delgado and Stefancic explain, "Everyone has potentially conflicting, overlapping identities, loyalties, and allegiances" (CRT: An Introduction 10). In other words, we cannot predict an individual's identity, beliefs, or values based on categories like race, gender, sexuality, religion, nationality, etc; instead, we must recognize that individuals are capable of claiming membership to a variety of different (and oftentimes seemingly contradictory) categories and belief systems regardless of the identities outsiders attempt to impose upon them.

Works Cited

Delgado, Richard and Jean Stefancic. Critical Race Theory: An Introduction. 2 nd ed. New York: New York University Press, 2012.

Delgado, Richard and Jean Stefancic, eds. Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge. 3 rd ed. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2013. Print.

Recommended Sources for Additional Research

Bell, Derrick A. "Who's Afraid of Critical Race Theory?" University of Illinois Law Review 4 (1995): 893-910.

Crenshaw, Kimberlé, Neil Gotanda, Gary Peller, and Kendall Thomas, eds. Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings that Formed the Movement. New York: The New Press, 1995

Davis, Peggy. "Law as Microaggression." Yale Law Journal 98 (1989): 1559-1577.

Gates, Henry Louis. The Signifying Monkey: A Theory of African American Literary Criticism. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.

Harris, Cheryl. "Whiteness as Property." Harvard Law Review 106.8 (1993): 1707-1791.

hooks, bell. Feminist Theory: From the Margins to the Center. Boston: South End Press, 1984.

Lipsitz, George. The Possessive Investment in Whiteness: How White People Profit from Identity Politics. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1998.

Spillers, Hortense. "Mama's Baby, Papa's Maybe: An American Grammar Book." Diacritics 17.2 (1987): 64-81.

Williams, Patricia. Seeing a Color-Blind Future: The Paradox of Race. New York: Noonday Press, 1998.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Critical Race Theory // Purdue Writing Lab

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice. Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.

# data[].attributes.headline
Anti Blackness in China and Why Critical Race Theory falls Short

# data[].attributes.subject
Anti Blackness in China and Why Critical Race Theory falls Short

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Photo by Tim Foster

How do you talk about racism when the perpetrator isn't white? On 28 April, the Wall Street Journal published an article describing the racist treatment that black people endured in China as a result of Covid-19. African nationals in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou were "subjected to forced coronavirus testing, barred from hotels and restaurants, and must observe arbitrary self-quarantines, regardless of symptoms or travel history." Social justice advocates rushed forth to condemn this on social media, but found themselves unable to draw on the standard arsenal of critiques about whiteness. Because racist acts committed by people of color do not conform to the mainstream narratives of social justice, it is difficult to talk about these acts using the standard language of critical race theory.

The terminology that we use to discuss race relations in the United States centers on the dynamic between Caucasians and people of color, and often excludes the latter group from being potential perpetrators of racism themselves. As Carlos Hoyt Jr., assistant professor of social work at Wheelock College, puts it, the common dispute among people today is "whether the original definition of racism, the belief in the superiority/inferiority of people based on racial identity, should be revised to exclusively and strictly mean the use of power to preserve and perpetuate the advantages of the dominant social identity group-that is, white people in American society." Most social activists and critical race theorists have adopted the latter definition, sometimes called prejudice plus power, arguing that racism against white people cannot exist because you can't be racist against a group that has all the economic, social and cultural power.

However, the definition of racism as a tool to uphold the power of the dominant group, makes it far more difficult to talk about racial prejudice between non-white individuals, as illustrated by the example of anti-blackness in China. The Han Chinese, who comprise 92% of the Chinese population, are the dominant social identity group. Chairman Mao himself acknowledged this by coining the term Han chauvinism 70 years ago to describe local Han ethnocentrism. However, critical race theory's conception of anti-blackness as stemming from the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the continuing subjugation that followed does not adequately describe anti-blackness in China. For most of its history, China was relatively closed off to foreigners. When black people visit China today, they are treated as spectacles, often photographed without their consent and pointed at as if they were animals in a zoo. In the United States, while black people are also treated differently on the basis of their skin color, you'd be hard pressed to find an American who has never seen a black person before, or would take an unsolicited picture of him or her. The exoticization and otherization of black people in China, while similarly immoral, cannot be attributed to the same reasons as America's historical oppression of black communities.

It is important to acknowledge this difference so that progressives like myself do not adhere too closely to a predetermined framework of race relations for cases in which it does not apply, such as anti-blackness in China. While critical race theory is helpful for understanding many of the causes and manifestations of racism in the west, the common narratives espoused by critical race theorists do not comprehensively explain all acts of racial prejudice in the world-nor even in our own societies. We must not allow a limited definition of racism to pressure us into brushing aside racism by non-white perpetrators and imposing a western notion of race relations on situations to which it is not relevant. When we define racism in a way that is mostly designed to admonish one particular group, we will inevitably underplay racism committed by other groups. As an Asian-American woman, I want to be able to criticize racism from my own community. Similarly, I want to be able to criticize racism that I experience from other non-white communities. A definition of racism that exclusively incriminates white perpetrators makes it much harder to do this.

Critical race theory falls short when analyzing the racial tensions between non-white individuals because one can no longer attribute prejudicial behaviors to white supremacy. If racism continues to be defined as power plus prejudice, it will be difficult to label many instances of racial tension as racism, especially when they involve people of color themselves: one particularly salient example was the racially-motivated hate crime committed in Texas by a Latino man, who stabbed an Asian-American family of three because he "thought the family was Chinese, and infecting people with the coronavirus." The perpetrator wasn't white-so the act was not an instance of racism in the sense of "preserv[ing] and perpetuat[ing] the advantages of the dominant social identity group." But it's difficult not to see this as a blatant act of anti-Asian racism. If we don't call it racism, what do we call it? Perhaps we will have to invent a new term that can encompass instances of bias from one group to another when neither group is the most powerful in society. But racial prejudice among people of color seems close enough to racism that even social justice advocates on the left, who might also argue that reverse racism doesn't exist, would use the term racism to describe anti-blackness in China or a Sinophobic hate crime committed by a Latino man, even though they do not fit the precise definition of racism that requires the structural component of racial dominance.

A definition of racism that suggests that people of color and white people can be equally guilty of racism would resolve this issue. However, it would open the door to Rawlsian, colorblind judgments of racial issues, which do not reflect the historical realities of our society today. Absent acknowledgement that there exists a dominant group in society, events like Black History Month would be deemed racist because they show favoritism of one racial group over another. But context matters-during my K-12 public school education in the United States, the vast majority of historical figures I learned about were white men. It makes sense that we need to balance the scales a little. The question is whether a race-blind definition would leave enough room for historical and cultural nuance in race politics. Most people who accept a colorblind definition probably still see the necessity of Black History Month and other celebrations of African-American culture. A more difficult line to draw for many would be whether stereotypes and exclusion of white people, such as the recent social media trend of referring to white women as Karens, or the silencing of white people in conversations about race, should be deemed racist or not. Under a colorblind definition of racism, it would be harder to argue that they aren't.

Ultimately, the question is: how do you address racism in a manner that recognizes the complicity of all people, regardless of race, while also acknowledging the importance of historical and social contexts? As an Asian-American woman, it's a question that I have grappled with all my life. While I have witnessed members of my community both act as perpetrators of racism and be the targets of racism from other people of color, these examples rarely receive the same media attention as incidences that better conform to the mainstream narrative of who the perpetrators and victims of racism are. Although white supremacy is a useful epistemological framework for analyzing racism that is perpetuated by white people, it is by no means a comprehensive explanation of all instances of racial prejudice. We should not be so tied to the dominant academic discourse on racism that we cannot criticize instances of racial prejudice that are morally repulsive, but do not draw the attention of ethnic studies scholars. What is most important is that our disagreements about the definitions of racism do not preclude us from denouncing racially-motivated acts of violence and hostility when we see them. Regardless of what you want to call the discriminatory treatment of African nationals in China, and regardless of whether you believe that all individuals can be perpetrators and victims of racism, we can at least agree that the inhumane treatment of black people in China on the basis of their race is morally reprehensible.

Keep our magazine vibrant and sustainable by becoming a patron:

Related Topics

Canwen Xu is a senior at Columbia University studying political science and computer science. She writes a satire column for the Columbia Daily Spectator.

Like our articles?

Subscribe to our newsletter

You May Also Like

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Anti-Blackness in China and Why Critical Race Theory Falls Short - Areo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Photo by Tim Foster How do you talk about racism when the perpetrator isn't white? On 28 April, the Wall Street Journal published an article describing the racist treatment that black people endured in China as a result of Covid-19.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
× In our effort to bring good content to as many people as possible the text in this blog post has been machine translated so please excuse any mistakes. Thank you!
By Vicky Chong
Hey everyone! Today I'm going to be writing about something a little more serious and relevant in recent weeks. I'm sure many of you have heard about the high-profile police brutality cases that have been circulating the media in the past month, such as the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and, the most recent one to be brought to national attention, Elijah Maclain. These murders, perpetrated by the police under the guise of justice and community protection, were driven by racism and systemic hate towards Black people. So much more can be said about racism in American politics and bureaucracy and how modern slavery is perpetrated through the criminalization of Black people and how police forces are built on the foundations of slave patrols and thus, are inherently racist and deadly to the Black race (and how these values are embedded into their subconscious in the way these officers are trained - with extreme violence and prejudice against minorities), BUT (see I told you there is SO much to be said about it!! That was just the tip of the iceberg!!!! And it's a REALLY big iceberg) I am here today to talk about racism specifically in Asian communities and my personal experience with anti-blackness in how I was raised. The surge in activism towards the Black Lives Matter movement has shed a harsh light in how the smallest acts of racism in all communities contribute to the demonization of the Black race, and thus, excusing the violence committed by police forces.

Of course, I don't mean to shift the narrative onto myself and make it about me - rather, as an Asian, I'd like to discuss the flaws in Asian culture as it relates to anti-Black racism and to raise awareness on what the Asian community's responsibilities are in standing with the Black community.

Growing up, I was raised with plenty of colorism perpetrated by my family and community. In our culture, we have been taught that fairer skin equated to beauty and darker skin was a flaw. In this sense, young girls are always taught to shield themselves from the sun and to use skin lightening products to be pretty. Having dark skin always had connotations to being dirty, unfeminine, unattractive, and even rowdy and dangerous. This is so deeply ingrained into our culture that even our old folk-tales carry anti-black sentiments. In a particularly controversial Malaysian fable, Dayang Senandung, the heroine of the story is cursed with black skin and, as a result, is regarded as a shameful and horrible being. This story very accurately illustrates the anti-Black sentiments of Asian culture - to regard dark skin as a shameful and terrible flaw to be cursed with (hey, just because it's a folktale as old as time doesn't mean it isn't problematic!). As such, naturally dark skinned races, such as Indians and Africans - especially Africans - have always been regarded as different and bad. With such colorism implemented in our own cultural community, this colorism escalated into racism as we were subconsciously taught to demonize and fear those with darker skin. Of course, it wasn't so blatant as telling us that Black people were bad people, it was teaching us to be afraid of them and think of them as below - lesser than we were.

Needless to say, more often than not, Asian countries discriminate against the African race. Not only that, but according to our culture, it is not even illegal and wrong to do so - it is perfectly justified. Apartment complexes would pride themselves on not having any Black tenants, and Black tenants would often get turned away. This justified racism feeds into the Asian culture of bullying Black people, treating them with close to no respect. Saying the N-word casually is common practice, and making fun of Black culture "all in good fun" is considered humorous. When I left to study for the U.S., my family members even "joked" with me about how appalling and crazy it would be if I ended up with a Black boyfriend!

Casual racism is so deeply embedded into the Asian culture that we are conditioned to view Black people as lesser - so much so that we turn a blind eye to their abuse. We allow white people to continue with their hate crimes because while anti-blackness is woven into our cultural belief systems, pro-whiteness is normalized as well. Indeed, glorification of the white race and their features go hand-in-hand with Asian demonization of the Black race. I can go on and on about how when someone in my community has somewhat Anglo-features (larger eyes, a higher nose bridge, etc.), they are praised for being so beautiful. And when someone brings home a white girlfriend from the UK after studying abroad, they are regarded with a certain respect for being able to attract someone white, and therefore, better than the rest of us! White teachers in high schools are regarded as smarter and better teachers, and when there was a white student in school, everyone wanted to be their friend. There is a very clear narrative here: white people are better than everyone else. Indeed, there are endless positive preconceived notions about white people solely because of their glorification from the Asian community. Because of this taught behaviour to glorify white people, the Asian community then yearns for their approval.

In America, Asians are regarded as the "model minority," "proof" that discrimination doesn't exist and everyone can succeed so as long as they worked hard enough. Of course, this notion is false and dangerous. Asians are provided with more opportunity because we are less discriminated against and more favored by the whites, benefitting from our light skin and therefore, "less threatening" appearance and the stereotypes slapped onto us (that we are more hard-working and soft-spoken than other minorities - which is false! All minorities are equally as deserving). Not only that, only Asians were given a headstart to succeed in the U.S. in the 1960s because only skilled Asian workers were allowed to move to the West during that time. In short, all the favoritism and glorification has led to us being bystanders and in turn, perpetrators to the white man's hate crimes. Furthermore, there is something to be said about how one of the officers responsible for George Floyd's murderers was Asian American. The Asian officer, Tou Thao, stood by as the white police officer, Derek Chauvin, murdered Floyd.

I think it is about time Asians stopped ignoring the slaughter of Black people and change our seemingly small, racist ways that cause a butterfly effect in allowing our Black brothers and sisters to die. Our racist, anti-Black culture has stopped the Asian community from being good allies and good people, and it is high time we called out our families about their racist remarks and jokes that feed into the anti-Black sentiment. As minorities who have benefitted from anti-Blackness and systemic racism against the Black people, we have to recognize our duty to do more and stand in solidarity.

So, remember to CHECK YOUR BIASES and STAND UP TO YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY ABOUT RACISM! Recognize that racism escalates from jokes to murders in the most devastating way and do your part to fight against it. Nobody is perfect and free of prejudice, especially after being conditioned for generations to think of some people as lesser, but it is a conscious effort to unlearn the racism we are taught and to recognize the racism that is so deeply normalized in our culture. Speak up for your Black brothers and sisters! These are uncomfortable conversations to have, yes, but it is the least we can do.

That said, please donate (if you can) and sign as many petitions as possible! Personally, my sister and I have sat down in front of our laptops for an hour, signing as many petitions as we could. We had a billion tabs open and our hearts broke with each petition's story but we felt better knowing we were doing our part. Here is a link to a list of petitions that you SHOULD sign! https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/#petitions

And here is more info on how to talk to our anti-Black families about the Black Lives Matter cause and teaching them to unlearn the racism they were taught:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBB2FsiBq7-/?igshid=seek49zrz5dv
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBHwwgdpPZd/?igshid=cyg0q3vfashm
Vicky Chong, from Malaysia, will be attending UC Berkeley in fall 2020.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
× In our effort to bring good content to as many people as possible the text in this blog post has been machine translated so please excuse any mistakes. Thank you! By Vicky Chong Hey everyone! Today I'm going to be writing about something a little more serious and relevant in recent weeks.

# data[].attributes.headline
Pre-European Contact Colourism and Post Colonial Racism in Asia and North Africa

# data[].attributes.subject
Pre-European Contact Colourism and Post Colonial Racism in Asia and North Africa

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
European imperialists are often blamed for bringing the "lighter skin is righter" mentality to indigenes of colonized lands in Africa and Asia. Critics of this mental colonization don't always acknowledge in the same breath that many North African and Asian cultures had placed a premium on light skin PRIOR to European exposure. Indian folk songs praised the beautiful woman who has "the color of butter" (Indian butter is white, not yellow). Pre-colonial Indonesian women used plant-based skin treatments to make their complexion pale.

However, the fact that pre-colonial colorism exists does NOT absolve Europeans of their responsibility for indoctrinating non-European populations with harmful racial ideologies. Pre-colonial colorism in many cultures is fundamentally different from modern Western racism; the vocabulary and assumptions used in the discussion of modern racism are not necessarily helpful or relevant in understanding pre-European-contact attitudes towards complexion.

Pre-European-contact colorism occurs in the context of members of the same "race" (quotes being used because "race" is a modern Western concept we are applying anachronistically). Wealthy people did not have to work in the sun, and thus were lighter-complexioned than poor workers and peasants. Light skin became a symbol of wealth and class. Fatness, another physical characteristic associated with a lifestyle of prestige and plenty, was also deemed attractive. Famed medieval North African writer Ibn Battuta described "the most perfect of women in beauty" as "pure white and fat." ¹

Such preferences for the plump and pale were not limited to North Africa. Paintings from pre-modern China and Japan depicted gods, warriors, and other attractive men with ample bellies. The round belly implies physical stability and economic sufficiency. The Chinese euphemism for getting fat literally means "getting wealthy". Chinese texts from as early as the 3rd century praised a handsome man's pallid countenance as the perfect contrast to gleaming black eyes. ²

Ihara Saikaku, a 17th century Japanese writer, constrasted the beauty of the black-haired, pale-skinned urban youth to the unattractiveness of orange-haired, sun-tanned rural boys. Peasant boys who worked outdoors had their black hair bleached orange by sun and sweat. Thus, for the pre-modern Japanese, pale hair and dark skin came to be signifiers of an under-privileged lifestyle, just as black hair and pale skin symbolized urban sophistication and privilege.

When Europeans started exporting their ideas of the white European master race to colonized lands, the toxic reaction between old lifestyle-based colorism and new Western racism produced a harmful new compound which associated European features with power, wealth and beauty. Some European-descent whites absolve themselves of responsibility by saying, "The only reason racism took root so easily in Japan/the Philippines/[fill in the blanks] is because the people there already had similar ideas about race and color." What these Europeans fail to understand is that while the new ideas of racism may wear the clothes of old class/lifestyle-based colorism, it is a whole different animal underneath.

Firstly, the fact that other indigenous preferences that accompanied traditional colorism - such as the preference for fatness, black hair, black eyes and round flat faces - have declined demonstrates that the new Eurocentric standards of beauty are based on assumptions different from those of traditional colorism. For example, the influence of American pop culture replaced the original Japanese ideal of jet black hair with the phenomenon of Japanese dyeing their hair red, blonde or orange.

In a similar vein, many modern Filipinos see the 'high-nosed', oval-faced European as beautiful, some openly expressing the wish for a higher nose or more oval face. But this preference has not always existed. Prior to European colonization, the ancient Visayans of the Philippines considered the very opposite of high noses and oval faces handsome. Visayans, as well as some other Austronesian peoples in Malaysia and Indonesia, compressed their babies' skulls to achieve broad faces with receding foreheads and flat noses . The Minahasa of Celebes even restricted binding with a forehead board to the nobility. ³

Secondly, the modern concept of 'race' itself is a Western import. This new racial 'colorism' is no longer framed in the old context of "lifestyle/social circumstance determines appearance", i.e. "if you are wealthy, you will have certain physical characteristics as a result of your lifestyle". Post-colonial racism is in fact based on the opposite concept: that one's genotype, and by extension, its phenotypic expression, determines one's circumstance in life, i.e. "if you are white, you will have certain privileges as a result of your biological heritage". This idea of "biology=destiny" is what undergirds modern Western racism.

Sadly, many non-whites today do not examine the roots of their admiration for the white-skinned, high-nosed and light-eyed, and assume that their desire for whiteness is "natural" or "traditional". Some non-black people of color even speak of their "instinctive" fear of black people. Even without interacting with black people, some brown and yellow individuals have unthinkingly internalized European colonialist attitudes of a racial hierarchy with white at the top and black at the bottom.

In other cases, some Asians who assume that individual blacks are poor or uneducated may be possibly acting on traditional colorism. These Asians make the same assumptions about darker persons of their own 'race'. For all of individuals (regardless of race) some introspection would come in handy. Instead of excusing our preferences as "natural", "determined by hormones", "purely emotional, and therefore defying logical analysis", let's just ask ourselves as individuals, "Why do I prefer people who have certain physical characteristics, be it fatness or thinness or whiteness or blackness?"

Perhaps our individual motivations are totally benign. But perhaps if those who unconsciously subscribe to class-based colorism realize the origins of their preference for the light-skinned was based on wealth and not race, their idea that "black=poor" will fall flat because it should be obvious that people from dark-skinned races, regardless of economic situation, are dark-skinned. And therefore, using skin color as a gauge of economic status is not as relevant for subSaharan Africans and aboriginal Australians as it is for North Africans and Asians.

Even if 'race' is completely out of the picture, the next step is to acknowledge the classist implications of pre-colonial non-racial colorism. Some people find it appalling to marry for money, but the same people excuse preferences for spouses of light complexion as "purely physical". They do not recognize the wealth-based roots of color prejudices, and fail to see the role of social conditioning in constructing desire. The purpose of this essay is not to command people to change their desires, for no one has the power to dictate what is attractive to another. It merely suggests that we should UNDERSTAND the causes of our preferences. Whether we want or need to change is up to us.

Notes

1. Said Hamdun and Noel King, Ibn Battuta in Black Africa, p. 67

2. Bret Hinsch, Passions of the Cut Sleeve, p. 66

3. William Henry Scott, Barangay: Sixteenth Century Philippine Culture and Society, p. 22

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Pre-European Contact Colorism and Post-colonial Racism in Asia and North Africa - ColorQ Articles Etc

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
European imperialists are often blamed for bringing the "lighter skin is righter" mentality to indigenes of colonized lands in Africa and Asia. Critics of this mental colonization don't always acknowledge in the same breath that many North African and Asian cultures had placed a premium on light skin PRIOR to European exposure.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Colonialism is defined as "control by one power over a dependent area or people." It occurs when one nation subjugates another, conquering its population and exploiting it, often while forcing its own language and cultural values upon its people. By 1914, a large majority of the world's nations had been colonized by Europeans at some point.

Japan, Korea, and Thailand are the only other nations never to have been colonized by Europeans.

The concept of colonialism is closely linked to that of imperialism, which is the policy or ethos of using power and influence to control another nation or people, that underlies colonialism.

History of colonialism

In antiquity, colonialism was practiced by empires such as Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Ancient Egypt, and Phoenicia. These civilizations all extended their borders into surrounding and non-contiguous areas from about 1550 B.C. onward, and established colonies that used the physical and population resources of the people they conquered to increase their own power.

In Ancient Greece, for example, city-states often established colonies in search of both extra living space and economic gain. After consulting an oracle, members of the city-state would send a select group of its inhabitants to establish a new colony. To seal the association between colony and city, its founding members would light a fire with a flame taken from the original city's central hearth and engage in other rituals laying claim to the new location.

During what is now known as the Age of Discovery, founding a new colony depended on another ritual: gaining the sponsorship of a wealthy patron, usually a monarch, and embarking on large ships to search for unceded land. Beginning in the 15th century, Portugal began looking for new trade routes and searching for civilizations outside of Europe. In 1415, Portuguese explorers conquered Ceuta, a coastal town in North Africa, kicking off an empire that would last until 1999.

Soon the Portuguese had conquered and populated islands like Madeira and Cape Verde, and their rival nation, Spain, decided to try exploration, too. In 1492, Christopher Columbus began looking for a western route to India and China. Instead, he landed in the Bahamas, kicking off the Spanish Empire. Spain and Portugal soon became locked in competition for new territories and took over Indigenous lands in the Americas, India, Africa, and Asia.

The rest of Western Europe swiftly followed: England, the Netherlands, France, and Germany quickly began their own empire building overseas, fighting Spain and Portugal for the right to lands they had already colonized.

Often, the colonies were wrested from the hands of their Indigenous inhabitants by relatively small parties of European men who lay claim after short skirmishes or by intimidating locals with their vessels, weapons, and trade items. For example, Columbus' crew for his famous 1492 voyage consisted of just 90 men, 39 of whom he left behind to build a settlement in what is now Haiti.

Subjugation and revolutions

Among the allures of colonialism was the chance to recruit-and often enslave-Indigenous people to benefit a colonial power. In Brazil, for example, explorers called bandeirantesembarked on expeditions in search of Native people to capture and enslave for Portuguese-established plantations and mines. And slavers from throughout Europe participated in the Atlantic slave trade, dealing in kidnapped Central and West Africans and forcing them to perform labor that enriched their empires overseas.

Even former colonies eventually became colonizers themselves: The U.S., which was formerly held by Great Britain, extended its territory shortly after winning the War of Independence and later expanded its claims to the Pacific and Latin America.

Starting in the 1880s, European nations also began taking over African nations, racing to coveted natural resources and establishing colonies they would hold until an international period of decolonization that lasted from around 1914 to 1975 and challenged European rule

By far, the most successful colonizer was the British Empire, which at its height soon after World War I could boast territories in every time zone in the world. The sun "never set" on England's political and economic ambitions, which it carried out with the help of British colonial governments.

De Beers Diamond magnate and British imperialist Cecil Rhodes is a controversial figure in South Africa. In recent years, many of the country's residents have called for the removal of monuments honoring Rhodes, saying his influence paved the way for apartheid.

Photograph by Hulton-Deutsch Collection, CORBIS/Corbis via Getty

Despite the growth of European colonies in the Western Hemisphere, most colonized countries gained independence during the 18th and 19th century, beginning with the American Revolution in 1776 and the Haitian Revolution in 1781. However, the Eastern Hemisphere continued to tempt European colonial powers.

Colonial rationale and resistance

Colonial powers justified their conquests by claiming they had a legal and religious obligation to control the land and culture of Indigenous peoples. Conquering nations cast their role as civilizing "barbaric" or "savage" nations, and argued that they were acting in the best interests of those whose lands and peoples they exploited.

Historically, church leaders both encouraged and participated in the takeover and exploitation of foreign lands and labor, most often in the name of Christian conversion. In the 15 th century, Catholic popes laid out a religious justification for colonization, issuing a series of papal bulls now known as the Doctrine of Discovery that asserted colonization was necessary to save souls and seize lands for the growth of the Church. Often, Christian missionaries were among the first to make inroads into new lands. Inspired by the belief that they must convert as many Indigenous people to Christianity as possible, they imported both religious and cultural customs and a paternalistic attitude toward the colonies' Native inhabitants.

Mahatma Gandhi enjoys a laugh with his two granddaughters Ava and Manu. Gandhi oversaw the end of Great Britain's colonial rule in India.

Photograph by Bettmann, Getty

Yet resistance to this control is an integral part of the story of colonialism. Even before decolonization, Indigenous people on all continents staged violent and nonviolent resistance to their conquerors. These included the Pueblo Rebellion overthrowing Spanish rule of what is now New Mexico in 1680, the slave revolt turned revolution in Haiti in 1791, a series of rebellions against English rule in India, and many other instances of collective and personal resistance.

Ethiopia was able to remain one of just two African nations to sidestep European colonial rule due to a series of savvy alliances forged by its emperor, and in 1896 the nation managed to stave off an Italian invasion at the Battle of Adwa.

Colonialism's legacy

Colonial governments invested in infrastructure and trade and disseminated medical and technological knowledge. In some cases, they encouraged literacy, the adoption of Western human rights standards, and sowed the seeds for democratic institutions and systems of government. Some former colonies, like Ghana, experienced a rise in nutrition and health with colonial rule, and colonial European settlement has been linked to some development gains.

However, coercion and forced assimilation often accompanied those gains, and scholars still debate colonialism's many legacies. Colonialism's impacts include environmental degradation, the spread of disease, economic instability, ethnic rivalries, and human rights violations -issues that can long outlast one group's colonial rule.

As South Asia historian John McQuade writes, "It takes a highly selective misreading of the evidence to claim that colonialism was anything other than a humanitarian disaster for most of the colonized."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The subjugation of indigenous people-and the exploitation of their land and resources-has a long and brutal history.

# data[].attributes.headline
Colonialism’s Role in the Success of the Filipino Skin Whitening Industry. 

# data[].attributes.subject
Colonialism’s Role in the Success of the Filipino Skin Whitening Industry. 

# data[].attributes.headline
Colonialism’s Role in the Success of the Filipino Skin Whitening Industry. 

# data[].attributes.subject
Colonialism’s Role in the Success of the Filipino Skin Whitening Industry. 

# data[].attributes.headline
White and Beautiful: An Examination of Skin Whitening Practices and Female Empowerment in China

# data[].attributes.subject
White and Beautiful: An Examination of Skin Whitening Practices and Female Empowerment in China

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Abstract
In recent years, the prevalence of skin whitening products has increased tremendously among Asian women. The cultural desire for pale skin can be attributed to the phenomenon of colorism, the "discriminatory treatment of individuals falling within the same 'racial' group on the basis of skin color" (Herring, 2002). Although social stratification based on skin tone is not a novel concept in China, it has taken on a new dimension in recent decades due to the rise of commercialization and consumerism. As a result, cosmetic companies have capitalized on this opportunity to provide beauty products for women. Although the claims that these products can reduce the darkness of one's are rather dubiousness, East Asian women have expressed increased interest in skin whiteners (Glenn, 2008). Thus, there seems to be a correlation between colorism and consumerism. The ability to purchase these products provides women the illusion of privilege, agency, and social mobility (Saraswati, 2010).This article examines the role of colorism in contemporary China and the perception of privilege that cosmetic whitening products generate for Chinese women. By analyzing the historical and sociological contexts specific to Chinese society, this article will explicate the ways in which pale skin has become a popularized social desire as well as the perceived agency of Chinese women by consuming and purchasing skin whiteners.
Author's Note
Evelyn Yeung is a senior at Arizona State University, where she is studying History and Sociology with a minor in Women and Gender Studies. Upon graduation, she intends to pursue a Master's degree in Museum Studies, where she will utilize exhibition spaces as platforms to engage the general public with issues of social concerns. During her free time, she enjoys doing film photography and napping with her adopted cat.
Keywords: Agency, Empowerment, Colorism, Privilege, Social Mobility, Consumerism

1. Introduction

Walking down the aisles of Shanghai's department stores and shopping malls, one can notice that a particular cosmetic product dominates the Chinese market: the skin whitener. Pale and unblemished skin has become a central aspect of femininity and social identity among urban Chinese women. The desire for light skin, however, is not exclusively a modern phenomenon, and in fact predates contemporary influences of popular culture and Western aesthetics of beauty. The value of pale skin is historically constructed and influenced by various sociopolitical factors.

Though the yearning for the pale aesthetic is not new, the practice of skin whitening has become more complex in modern China due to the recent surge in consumerism and increasing product availability. Since the implementation of the Open Door Policy in 1978, China has seen tremendous growth in its consumer market. In particular, the Chinese cosmetics market is now the second largest in the globe, generating $25 billion just in 2013 (Ren, 2014). Skin whiteners play a significant role in this market, accounting for one-third of all facial skincare products sold in China (Chatterjee, 2009). The high revenue generated from skin whitening products indicates that pale skin remains a highly sought-after aesthetic among consumers. Despite its prevalence, however, the implications of this practice often go unexamined by its practitioners. The increasing popularity of skin whitening cosmetics and their rising costs further reinforce the social perception of dark skin as a trait that must be corrected. Women who purchase these products are not only reshaping ideas regarding modern Chinese femininity, but their newfound ability to consume also constructs varying ideas of agency and female empowerment within the new neoliberal state.

2. Historical Prevalence of Skin Whitening in China

The cultural desire for pale skin has been prevalent throughout Chinese history, though its significance was contested in varying time periods. In ancient China, pale skin was indicative of one's elite status. Because farmers and laborers devoted long hours to outdoor labor, they experienced long exposure to the sun, resulting in darker skin tones. The elite, on the other hand, did not face such necessity for manual labor and remained indoors. As a result, individuals in the upper social classes had faircolored skin (Mak, 2007; Zhang, 2012). Skin tone thus became a signifier of class, with pale skin dominating the top of the hierarchy. Just as clothing and jewelry could differentiate individuals' economic standing, the shade of one's skin also became an essential aspect of one's identity.

Furthermore, the emphasis on a fair complexion can be found in ancient proverbs and writings. In ancient Chinese literature, attractive women were often described by likening their skin to that of "snow," "ice," or "jade." These analogies demonstrated "qualities of transparency, delicacy, smoothness, and whiteness" (Zhang, 2012, p. 440). Moreover, ancient Chinese proverbs also reiterate the concept of whiteness as perfection. For instance, a popular proverb claims that "a white complexion can hide several flaws." These literary connections between beauty and whiteness suggest that the shade of one's skin has played a historically significant role in Chinese society. Moreover, the frequent use of these analogies in ancient literature promotes the idea that white skin is the ideal physical aesthetic, as it has been embedded in traditional culture for centuries.

Yet, because ideas surrounding beauty vary throughout history, the cultural desire for paleness was not always central to Chinese society. In response to the Mukden Incident and Japan's subsequent invasion of China in 1931, the Nationalist government sought to strengthen the citizenry's physicality to defend against further foreign attacks. Under the banner of civic obligation and patriotism, the government enacted a series of actions to pursue a more athletic physique for women, who were deemed to be the weaker sex. In June of 1936, the government outlawed fashionable clothing and permed hair. Violators were instructed to return home and change their attire. Those who resisted were often fined and jailed (Gao, 2006). As governmental enforcement of the athletic body ensued, popular culture also promoted an austere aesthetic for women. In the Shanghai women's magazine Linglong, writers condemned the use of makeup by deeming it "deceptive and temporary" and asserted that the maintenance of a robust physique was more viable because it was "self-cultivated and will last until old age" (Gao, 2006, p. 559). In addition to the rejection of cosmetic products, the qualifying elements of a fit physique also included "healthy skin color and lively gestures" attained through rigorous exercise (Gao, 2006, p. 559). Healthy skin tone, in this era of athletic bodies, was attained through outdoor exercise rather than temporary cosmetic products. Exposure to the outdoors meant the darkening of one's skin. Hence, one can assume that the definition of a "healthy skin tone" in this era was defined by a tan complexion. As a result, self-adornment and emphasis on maintaining a pale complexion were abandoned in favor of sporting athletic bodies for the purposes of patriotism and nationalism. The regulation of women's complexion was thus closely tied to political motives created by the male-dominated government. This form of biopolitical control would later heighten in times of cultural, political, and economic upheaval under the Maoist regime.

Though the Nationalist government in the 1930s transitioned feminine beauty from the pale aesthetic to robust athletic bodies, the Maoist regime further intensified the austerity of women's appearances. In fact, the Communist state often demonstrated preference for androgynous and ascetic appearances. As the regime was concerned with societal equality and the elimination of economic disparity, the government perceived women's self-beautification as a symbol of gender oppression and inequality. By reducing bodily differences between men and women, authorities believed that women's ascetic appearances would eradicate the patriarchal system of private property, and women would thus become liberated (Ip, 2003). Moreover, physical appeals of femininity were considered a sign of a "petit bourgeois," an individual from the property-owning lower middle class (Ip, 2003, p. 330). In an attempt to abolish economic differences, the state fiercely condemned any emphasis on feminine beauty, especially beautification attained through material means. Beauty was thus eradicated as a form of identification. Moreover, the pursuit of selfadornment was condemned not only because it represented disparity among individuals but also because it distracted citizens from their devotion to political progress. The Maoist state discouraged all forms of bodily modification and urged citizens to deemphasize their physical differences in an attempt to render their identity and economic standing equal.

Despite the Maoist state's control of physical expressions, individual women found the space to resist these notions of nationalist femininity. For instance, urban women wore perfume, while rural women often tied colored ribbons to their hair (Ip, 2003). These forms of resistance may be subtle but served to provide a sense of individuality and empowerment for these women. Moreover, the wives of municipal government officials also participated in this resistance against the state-governed appearance. During special political occasions, they would dress in elegant traditional qipao, tightfitting Chinese gowns that were made popular by upper class Shanghai women in the 1920s (Ip, 2003). Although it was a clear demonstration of selfadornment and indulgence, this method of resistance was acceptable because it was justified as promotion of the state's prosperity.

In addition to the persistence of self-adornment practices, Communist propagandists also continued to utilize beauty as a method of publicizing the country's success. Stories of heroic nationalist women did not focus on critiquing women's infatuation with their physical appearances; rather, these patriotic narratives were accompanied by images of attractive females (Ip, 2003). Despite state mandates on ascetic lifestyles, the Communists continued to apply feminine beauty to the pragmatic political propaganda. Images of self-adornment thus began to permeate the public sphere, changing the public discourse on individualized beauty within an austere political environment.

By the 1980s, social attitudes regarding the use of cosmetic products had begun to undergo rapid change. The conclusion of the Maoist regime allowed Deng Xiaoping's government to implement various socioeconomic reforms, leading the emergence of new discourses on women's issues. In particular, modification of one's physical body was no longer perceived as "an expression of bourgeois lifestyle," but rather as an "indication of the flourishing development of socialist production" (Honig & Hershatter, 1988, p. 49). Even authorities such as Tan Fuyun, chairperson for the Shanghai Women's Federation, publicly praised the power of cosmetics and noted that she and her delegates were often held in higher regard when adorned with light makeup (Honig & Hershatter, 1998). Thus, the government gradually accepted women's self-modification, as cosmetics became a sign of efficiency and highlighted the eminence of Communist China. Moreover, this concluding resistance to selfadornment demonstrated that beauty could indeed coexist with ideas of communism in a socialist state.

3. Skin Whitening Practices in Contemporary China

Within the contemporary context, the preoccupation with female beauty and indulgence in beauty products seems to adhere to Western and Caucasian aesthetics. Influenced by Western hegemonic beauty standards, the female aesthetic value in China has returned to its ancient preference for light skin. Some have argued that the global influence of white hegemony can be problematic, because it functions not only to reinforce the privilege of the Caucasian population but also to "[manipulate] racial outsiders to fight against one another [and] to compete with each other for white approval" (as qtd. in Li, Min, Belk, Kimura, & Bahl, 2008, p. 446). This Euro-centric perspective contends that the yearning for a pale complexion exists because of nonwhite populations' desire to physically mimic those who are in power. Thus, the current prominence of skin whitening products seems to be rooted in a historic yearning for a pale complexion, the influence of white hegemony, and most importantly, China's newfound ability to consume industrial products.

Though the preference for fair skin is not a new phenomenon in China, the practices of skin whitening have changed significantly over time. Before modern capitalism, Chinese women practiced skin whitening by traditional methods like swallowing crushed pearl power or applying chalk onto their skin (Li et al., 2008; Schwartz, 2011). However, with the rise of commercialization and industrialization, modern skin whitening techniques now rely on innovative technology and clever marketing. For example, whitening salons can be found throughout the streets of urban China. These salons carry laser-operated machines that claim to whiten one's "entire body... in just one hour" (Schwartz, 2011). Although these salons are widely available, the most popular option is to purchase skin-whitening cosmetics in beauty departments. These products are particularly popular because of their accessibility as over-the-counter cosmetics. Unlike whitening salons, these cosmetic goods do not require consumers to set aside a specific time for the procedure and allow consumers to apply the products at their convenience. Advertisers also emphasize the skin whitening properties in various staple skincare products, such as foundation and sunscreen. These products, as advertisers claim, not only lighten one's skin temporarily but can permanently alter one's skin tone gradually with continual and consistent use. Thus, skin-whitening products are accessible and affordable for the average Chinese consumer. By contrast, traditional apparatuses used in skin whitening were viable solely for the wealthy.

In addition to the availability of these products, the commodification of pale beauty has also been popularized through intensive marketing. Advertisements for whitening cosmetics frequently employ images of celebrities and ancient proverbs (Mak, 2007). These advertisements often feature half-Caucasian/half-Asian models to represent the image of ideal beauty. These models are chosen specifically so that consumers can find the models' Asian heritage relatable but also perceive their Caucasian features, especially their white skin, as a desirable goal to pursue (Rondilla, 2009). Moreover, marketing of skin whiteners often utilize ancient idioms to suggest whiteness as the proper aesthetic. Such marketing techniques are rather effective, as research (Mak, 2007) has found that individuals who hold popular proverbs, such as "a white complexion can hide several flaws," in higher regard also demonstrate a preference for lighter skin tones. Thus, these ancient proverbs are often applied to justify the act of skin modification, as proponents claim that this is a century-old practice and aesthetic. Moreover, advertisers also manipulate consumers through phrases that denote an association between tradition and fair skin. One cosmetic company in Hong Kong claimed that their skin whitening product incorporated a "proven Traditional Chinese Imperial Palace secret formula" to enhance its effectiveness (Bray, 2002). The mention of the "Traditional Chinese Imperial Palace" suggests skin whitening as a practice rooted in the country's history, further convincing consumers that it is an established and ordinary practice. Hence, the intensity of marketing normalizes the practice of skin whitening and influences individuals' construction of feminine beauty.

Though the fierce marketing of skin whitening cosmetics has greatly influenced the beauty discourse in China, the actual practicality of the products seems dubious at best. In fact, skin-whitening users often report that they have observed little to no changes in their skin tone after continual use of the products (Rondilla, 2009). Research also demonstrates that consumers are often aware that the pursuit of pale skin is difficult in reality (Mak, 2007). Because skin whiteners frequently do not generate substantial results, consumers are conscious that the probability of attaining light skin is little to none.

4. Social Meanings of Pale Skin

Despite the ineffectiveness, production and consumption of skin whiteners continue to rise. The popularity of skin modification products may be attributed to the socioeconomic value of female beauty. Within a male-dominated society, women's appearance functions as a form of "currency" (Wolf, 1991, p.12). Because women's worth is dependent on their physical appearance, a lack of physical beauty can thus jeopardize one's success. A study of Chinese female college students found that physical beauty, which often includes having pale skin, is essential and advantageous when meeting employers and potential dating partners. One participant even claims, "women are still facing a lot of limitations when it comes to employment. Many companies still won't hire women, and when they do, they want to hire someone with good physical appearance" (Zhang, 2012, p. 48). An attractive physical appearance is pursued not only because of one's aesthetic desires, but also because it is a significant factor for women's opportunities. Since skin whiteners promise to alter one's appearance, these products thus represent a chance for upward socioeconomic mobility.

Not only does the consumption of skin whiteners increase one's chance at success, the sole act of purchasing these products can be a display of wealth and independence. Because cosmetics are considered luxury items, the ability to dedicate one's income to makeup can demonstrate an individual's potential wealth (Rondilla, 2009). The ability to consume, in the context of neoliberal and capitalist China, thus manifests itself as not only a privilege but also as a form of power over one's body. Being able to purchase skin-whitening commodities, regardless of their actual functionality, implies that there are abundant choices available. Thus, individuals are not limited in their agency. Women have to option to choose the color of their skin and subsequently determine their own social and financial success. As a result, dark skin is frowned upon not only because it does not comply with cultural feminine aesthetics, but also because it represents a failure to control one's body and social status despite unrestricted agency.

5. Empowerment and Disempowerment of Chinese Women

Skin whiteners' promise to alter one's body can give female consumers the perception of personal agency. A survey of female college students in China indicated that the participants did not find cosmetic modification of the body as repulsive or unnatural. Rather, they rejoiced in the availability of cosmetic products and services for increasing their life opportunities (Zhang, 2012). Moreover, traditional Confucian concepts of loyalty assert that "women [are] subordinates to their fathers as girls, to their husbands as wives, and to their sons as widows" (as qtd. in Li et al., 2008, p. 448). The introduction of commercial skin whiteners, however, makes it possible to empower women by physically reclaiming their own bodies. Scholars (Li et al., 2008) have noted that self-beautification can liberate women from patriarchal constraints. The altering of women's skin according to their own desires is a physical manifestation of defiance and resistance against patriarchal control over the female body. Moreover, the physical reclaiming of the body not only restructures social power dynamics between men and women, but the consumption of cosmetic products also demonstrates women's newfound purchasing power. Chadha and Husband's analysis (2010) suggests that the Confucian emphasis on the family means that adorning oneself with luxury goods can illustrate not only an individual's success but also their ability to provide for their family. Thus, an individual's success often reflects the family's wealth. The purchase of skin whiteners can signify women's individual financial power as well as their potential to provide for the family, a responsibility that traditionally reserved for the male members of the family. Skin whitening products are a visual symbol for possible socioeconomic success and liberation from patriarchal norms.

Yet, contemporary Chinese women are also confined by the same elements that have served to empower them. Utilizing women's physical appearance as a form of capital is ultimately problematic. Employing female beauty as a source of social currency binds society's attention solely to female appearances, rendering women's academic and professional accomplishments less valuable. Moreover, the association between beauty and an individual's worth is especially troublesome in an age of intensified materialism. The continual use of cosmetic products may empower individual women, but ultimately serves as a form of restrictive self-surveillance. The regimen of cosmetics that women undergo on a daily basis is determined according to social standards of beauty. Applying these cosmetics in order to gain society's approval requires women to exert a significant amount of discipline onto their bodies (King, 2004; Li et al., 2008). Thus, societal approval of cosmetics serves as a method of governance and control of women's bodies, ultimately subjugating women to arbitrary social conventions of beauty.

6. Conclusion

Historically, women's bodies have been constructed and deconstructed to embody various meanings specific to the sociopolitical atmosphere and time period. Although the preference for a fair complexion has fluctuated throughout the centuries in China, contemporary social desire for pale skin seems prevalent and is deeply tied to the newfound consumer culture. The rise of commercialization makes skin whitening practices easily accessible to consumers, creating a perception of agency among women. Moreover, the ability to consume these skin whitening products proposes a duality between empowerment and disempowerment for Chinese women. Though some women perceive self-modification procedures as emancipatory, they are ultimately still confined within the constraints of societal approval and conventions of beauty. Thus, not only does the phenomenon of white over dark skin indicate a problematic hierarchy embedded in Chinese society, but the intensification of this phenomenon through consumerism also signifies an on-going contested construction of femininity and female power.

References

Bray, M. (2002, May 15). Skin deep: Dying to be white. CNN. Retrieved from http://edition.cnn.com/

Chadha, R., & Husband, P. (2010). Cult of the luxury brand: inside Asia's love affair with luxury. Boston, MA: Nicholas Brealey Publishing.

Chatterjee, S. (2009, November 12). Fair-skin fashion boosts sales of whitening creams in India. Bloomberg. http://www.bloomberg.com

Gao, Y. (2006). Nationalist and feminist discourses on jianmei (robust beauty) during China's 'national crisis' in the 1930s. Gender & History, 18(3), 546-573.

Honig, E., & Hershatter, G. (1988). Personal voices: Chinese women in the 1980's. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Ip, H. (2003). Fashioning appearances: Feminine beauty in Chinese communist revolutionary culture. Modern China, 29(3), 329-261. doi: 10.1177/0097700403253167

King, A. (2004). The prisoner of gender: Foucault and the disciplining of the female body. Journal of Internation Women's Studies, 5(2), 29-39.

Li, E. P. H., Min, H. J., Belk, R. W., Kimura, J., and Bahl, S. (2008). Skin lightening and beauty in four Asian cultures. Advances in Consume Research, 35, 444-449.

Mak, A. K. Y. (2007). Advertising whiteness: An assessment of skin color preferences among urban Chinese. Visual Communication Quarterly, 14, 144-157.

Ren, S. (2014, May 26). Shopping China's beauty aisle. Barron's. pp. M7.

Rondilla, J. (2009). Filipinos and the color complex: Ideal Asian beauty. In E. N. Glenn (Ed.), Shades of difference: Why skin color matters (pp. 63-80). Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Schwartz, J. (2011, June 6). Younger generation darkens a tradition. China In Focus. Retrieved from http://chinainfocus.net/

Wolf, N. (2002). The beauty myth: How images of beauty are used against women. New York: Perennial.

Zhang, M. (2012). A Chinese beauty story: how college women in China negotiate beauty, body image, and mass media. Chinese Journal of Communication, 5(4), 437-454.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
White and Beautiful: An Examination of Skin Whitening Practices and Female Empowerment in China

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In recent years, the prevalence of skin whitening products has increased tremendously among Asian women. The cultural desire for pale skin can be attributed to the phenomenon of colorism, the "discriminatory treatment of individuals falling within the same 'racial' group on the basis of skin color" (Herring, 2002).

# data[].attributes.headline
The Historical and Cultural Influences of Skin Bleaching in Tanzania

# data[].attributes.subject
The Historical and Cultural Influences of Skin Bleaching in Tanzania

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Kelly M. Lewis

Solette Harris

Christina Camp

Willbrord Kalala

Will Jones

Kecia L. Ellick

Justie Huff

Sinead Younge

Abstract

Skin bleaching, a practice to chemically lighten the skin, has become increasingly more common around the world in the past 30-40 years. In Africa, the practice is especially problematic because users, especially women, combine dangerous caustic agents (automotive battery acid, washing power, toothpaste, cloth bleaching agents) with common bleaching products that are high in mercury and lead; together, these increase the risk for severe health problems, such as irreversible skin damage, skin cancer, leukemia, and liver or kidney failure. Despite these great risks, skin bleaching is prevalent in Africa, with estimated rates rates nearing 30% in East Africa. Little research has examined how the historical legacies of slavery, colonization, and westernization in East Africa may have shaped internalized dominant cultural ideals, resulting in the dangerous practice of skin bleaching. This chapter takes an exploratory look at the institutions of slavery, colonization, westernization, and neocolonialism in East Africa and argues that these institutions may have placed Tanzanians in a color-conscious society. This also may have fueled potent skin-color ideals that have resulted in efforts to assimilate to dominating groups. This examination has great potential to inform our understanding of current skin-bleaching practices and the related prevention or intervention efforts underway in Tanzania. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.

Keywords

Skin Color Dominant Group Dark Skin Skin Tone Light Skin

These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

References

1. Amir, H., Mbonde, M. P., & Kitinya, J. N. (1992). Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in Tanzania. Central African Journal of Medicine, 38(11), 439-443. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1308840 . Accessed 11 Oct 2011.

2. Hunter, M. L. (2011). Buying racial capital: Skin-bleaching and cosmetic surgery in a globalized world. Journal of Pan African Studies, 4(1), 142-164. http://www.jpanafrican.com/docs/vol4no4/HUNTERFinal.pdf . Accessed 10 Oct 2011.

Authors and Affiliations

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Historical and Cultural Influences of Skin Bleaching in Tanzania

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Kelly M. Lewis Solette Harris Christina Camp Willbrord Kalala Will Jones Kecia L. Ellick Justie Huff Sinead Younge Skin bleaching, a practice to chemically lighten the skin, has become increasingly more common around the world in the past 30-40 years.

# data[].attributes.headline
‘Anti-blackness’ is a form of racism that is specifically damaging for black people

# data[].attributes.subject
‘Anti-blackness’ is a form of racism that is specifically damaging for black people

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Racism affects different races in different ways.

Anti-blackness is the name for the specific kind of racial prejudice directed towards black people.

There is a tendency to lump all ethnic minorities together - for ease, or out of laziness and ignorance.

We see that in terms like BAME (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic) and POC (people of colour). While these terms can be useful in some situations, they shouldn't be used in reference to a specific race unnecessarily. For instance, referring to a black woman as a 'woman of colour', when you could refer to her as black, can undermine her specific lived experiences of being black.

The concept of anti-blackness pushes back against the idea that all ethnic minorities have the same lived experiences and can be shoved under a singular umbrella.

To be clear, all kinds of racism are deplorable, but it is still worth carving out clearer definitions for the kinds of racism that disproportionately affect certain groups - like anti-black racism.

Compared to white people and Asian people - black defendants at crown court are the most likely to be remanded in custody.

Between 2017 and 2018, black people in Britain were around 10 times more likely to be stopped and searched by the police than white people, and three times more likely than Asian people.

Black people are more likely to be unemployed and homeless than all other racial minority groups.

All of these examples show that racism affects black people in different and, in some cases, more significant ways than other minority groups.

That's why it is important to highlight these differences by being clear about the specific type of racism black people in this country face.

Race equality thinktank Runnymede Trust defines the phrase perfectly:

'Anti-black racism is the specific exclusion and prejudice against people visibly (or perceived to be) of African descent - what most of us would commonly call black people,' says senior policy officer Kim McIntosh.

Kim says anti-blackness goes beyond bad feelings, negative attitudes or stereotypes.

'Anti-black racism is a toxic cocktail that mixes these beliefs with how people with power make decisions, how government policies are made, or how state services are delivered,' she adds. 'It prevents us from enjoying or exercising fundamental freedoms on an equal footing - like the freedom to live and work free from discrimination or abuse.'

What is the history of anti-blackness?

Black people have been 'othered' and maligned across the globe, and Kim says the transatlantic slave trade was a major catalyst for this.

'After slavery was abolished, slave owners branded former slaves as cursed with the "negro disease" of "laziness",' she explains. 'Black people who moved from the Caribbean to Britain still face the same prejudiced beliefs.'

Last year, research by NatCen and the Runnymede Trust found that 44% of people surveyed thought 'some races are born harder working than others'.

'These beliefs, widely held, have consequences for black people in the workplace,' says Kim. 'And just a few weeks back, we had to endure long-discredited arguments that black people have lower IQs dominate the news cycle as comments by Andrew Sabisky, the short-lived adviser to Number 10, resurfaced.'

Kim says the term 'anti-black racism' is helpful and can help us unpick how and why racism affects different ethnic groups in different ways.

'It's important to note that not only white people are capable of anti-black racism,' she adds. 'People from other ethnic minority groups can enact anti-black policies and hold anti-black beliefs.'

How does anti-blackness affect black people?

Psychologist and anti-racism scholar Guilaine Kinouani says anti-blackness is based on the alleged inherent inferiority and 'primitivity' of Africa, its people and its nearer descendants, i.e. black people.

She adds that these ideas are principally rooted in colonial constructions.

'While we may like to think such racist thinking has long left us, the reality is that within the system we have inherited: white supremacy, human lives in our society are stratified and, our life experiences and opportunities are still depended on our racial backgrounds,' she explains.

Put more simply, our racial hierarchy places white people at the top and places black people at the bottom - non-black people of colour stand somewhere in-between.

'Unsurprisingly, black people continue to pay the highest penalties on pretty much every social measure or outcome imaginable within social structures,' adds Guilaine.

'All things being equal, we are still the most vulnerable group to structural violence, social injustice, discrimination and to exclusion - in addition to a rift of negative health and mental health outcomes.

'And, images, discourses about our alleged inferiority continue to abound.'

She explains it by saying that being black is a 'highly taxed identity' and adds that all non-black groups benefit from anti-blackness, not only white groups. Which expands on what Kim said about all non-black racial groups having the capacity to be anti-black.

'This is a conversation that is difficult for many of us to have but it is an important one,' Guilaine adds.

'In the same way we now accept that white women, as a group, are often complicit in the oppression of people of colour, non-black people of colour also have a stake in the systemic injustice black people experience, and often reproduce it.'

She says that over centuries, many communities of colour have bought into colonial lies and anti-black stereotypes in an attempt to 'gain access to structures of power' and be accepted within whiteness.

'The price of assimilating into structures of power has often meant stepping on the heads of those lower down the rung on the ladder of power, often those closer to our struggle.'

It's all about awareness.

Acknowledging the ways black people can be disproportionately affected by specific kinds of racial discrimination is vital in order to dismantle these entrenched hierarchies.

The State of Racism

MORE : Children must learn about the British Empire at school to 'combat racism and white privilege'

MORE : There is still too much racism at universities

The lifestyle email from Metro.co.uk
Not convinced? Find out more

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'Anti-blackness' shows how racism can be specifically damaging for black people

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Racism affects different races in different ways. Anti-blackness is the name for the specific kind of racial prejudice directed towards black people. There is a tendency to lump all ethnic minorities together - for ease, or out of laziness and ignorance. We see that in terms like BAME (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic) and POC (people of colour).

# data[].attributes.headline
Starting with I: Combating Anti-Blackness in Libraries 

# data[].attributes.subject
Starting with I: Combating Anti-Blackness in Libraries 

# data[].attributes.headline
THE ANTI-BLACKNESS OF THE ASIAN COMMUNITY

# data[].attributes.subject
THE ANTI-BLACKNESS OF THE ASIAN COMMUNITY

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Anti-blackness is a disease that affects millions annually regardless of age, gender, socio-economic, geographic and political status. The symptoms include rage, insecurity, lack of empathy, physical violence, donning white hoods, vandalism, tampering with public water supplies and the ability to destroy the disenfranchised. This ailment exists in the communities of color and alarmingly, thanks to a reliable news source, has dwelled in North Korea for decades. One my favorite Facebook personalities, The Love Life of an Asian Guy, recently posted a piece addressing the theory of anti-blackness as a theory practiced beyond the Western world.

But the biggest question is: why would a country of color despise another? You may recall on May 2, 2014, the Korean Central News Agency published an anti-Obama rant suggesting that "it would be perfect for Obama to live with a group of monkeys in the world's largest African natural zoo and lick for bread crumbs thrown by spectators." Renowned author B.R. Meyers' 2010 book The Cleanest Race argues how outsiders associate North Korea as a Communist and race-based utopian society. The state ideology, according to Meyers, is similar to Nazism whiteness: racial purity as a necessary and essential to survival and progression of the native land. Remember Dennis Rodman and various members of the Harlem Globetrotter's unsuccessful visit? Going on the strength of Kim Jong-un who was supposedly a friend, all of the men involved were publicly humiliated. The Daily NK likened the sports legends as some sort of "American mafia" and inquired why "such a group of goblins would visit their land."

Reality: Anti-blackness is a global problem.

Negative depictions and feelings towards Black individuals is a direct result of a biased media community. The influence of the white Western race ideologies dates back to slavery, the emergence of the KKK and the destructive rise of Hitlerism. The hatred of Black bodies, though revered and admired for superior physical perfection, is a direct result of Asians feel a stronger connection to whites and that the playing fields are evenly balanced economically as well as culturally. According to a Pew Research paper Asian-Americans are "the highest-income, best-educated and fastest-growing racial group in the U.S. and are more satisfied than the general public with their lives, finances and the direction of the country" and feel that #BlackLives "no longer matter to the progression of society." To make matters more complicated, American-born domestic terrorist Dylan Roof had this to say on his personal website about Asians: "They are by nature very racist and could be great allies of the White race."

The rejection of brown bodies seems to live within their own communities as well. On recent years we witnessed Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who is Republican Indian-American spew anti-Islam rhetoric, denounce gay marriage and reject any aid to assist with his state's poor economic problems; writer Dinesh D'Souza referred to President Obama as "a boy from the ghetto;' South Carolina's Republican Gov. Nikki Haley, an Indian-American, once identified as white; and who could forget actress Mindy Kaling's brother, Vijay Chokalingam, boasted about changing his name in order to take advantage of Affirmative Action in order to obtain entry into medical school. Only when the Asian community can embrace and rid themselves of their biases can they began to accept Black and brown lives wholly.

In facing their own biases, Asians can begin by admitting they have a problem with racism and in order to alleviate this issue must be willing to understand our redemptive struggle and join us to end racial injustice by aiding in the fight and recognizing that #BlackLivesDoIndeedMatter.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Anti-Blackness of the Asian Community - JetMag.com

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Anti-blackness is a disease that affects millions annually regardless of age, gender, socio-economic, geographic and political status. The symptoms include rage, insecurity, lack of empathy, physical violence, donning white hoods, vandalism, tampering with public water supplies and the ability to destroy the disenfranchised.

# data[].attributes.headline
Anti-blackness in South Asian communities – how do we break the cycle

# data[].attributes.subject
Anti-blackness in South Asian communities – how do we break the cycle

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the first of a series exploring the issue, Dhruva Balram discusses the history and social implications of colourism in South Asia and diaspora communities, and how this relates to anti-Blackness worldwide.

Colourism, and its close relative anti-Blackness, is a pervasive scourge that underpins any notion of progress the South Asian community attempts to make. The prejudice and discrimination faced by individuals with a dark skin tone among South Asian people, despite belonging to the same racial group, is related to racism. This sentiment isn't hidden away, tucked away neatly. Rather, it rears its ugly head on an almost daily basis - grandmothers are quick to remind people not to spend too much time in the sun; the darker you are, the less your chances of getting married.

This acceptance, that to be darker than your kin is to be less than, is something that has been ingrained into our minds - force-fed to us as children along with our vegetables. This and many other lies have seeped down through generations afflicted with the guilt of colonisation and casteism.

Though the anti-blackness in South Asia can be easily blamed on a colonial hangover, it is also fuelled by our own unique strain of colourism, one that has been around for longer than European civilisation. Centuries of colonialism which led to systemic biases that favour whiteness have contributed to this idea in modern-day South Asian society.

Fair and Lovely advertisement

Historically, one's caste or social class is closely identified with skin colour. Brahmins, at the top of the social hierarchy in the caste system, were traditionally fair while lower castes had darker complexions. Sweeping generalisations of colour still being associated with caste [or class] is entrenched in the minds of the elderly, passed through generations and seeps into the psyche. Companies seeking a profit in a vulnerable market decided to take advantage of these insecurities. With a staggering 50-70 per cent share of the market in India, with the total market valued at over $200m USD, Fair and Lovely is the highest selling skin whitening cream in India.

Colourism is a form of racism. It affects people's livelihoods daily whether through employment prospects, potential marriage partners or abusive treatment by family members and friends. For the diaspora, the mass of South Asian immigrants that have found themselves stretched out across the world, the closer you are to the default - whiteness - the easier it is to assimilate into the default which, in the long-term, means success.

"This aspiration towards fairness - whether in behaviour or actual bleaching of skin - drives people towards a conditioned reading of bodies. This erases dark-skinned bodies, creating an anti-Blackness mentality within the community."

In recent years, global superstar Priyanka Chopra has made her mark in Hollywood. She talks about being "too ethnic" in America, but leaves behind a trail of using her class and upper-caste privilege to step on others to enter stardom. She's made a career of selling skin whitening creams; of promoting the ideology of white is right and to be dark is bad. The fairness of one's skin in India has long been associated with success. Hundreds of online matrimonial profiles cite the fairness of one's skin as a highly regarded prospect. It is ranked higher than a university degree or professional status on potential brides' profiles.

This aspiration towards fairness - whether in behaviour or actual bleaching of skin - drives people towards a conditioned reading of bodies. This erases dark-skinned bodies, creating an anti-Blackness mentality within the community. This conditioned belief is visible in the way our community interacts with Black people; anti-Blackness works in a number of painful ways.

Though we may exist in tandem with Black people as being "othered" in the white-hierarchal race ladder, we are not Black. Nor do we share the same experiences or traumas as Black folk in a Western context. Yet, we will co-opt and exploit Black culture for our own benefit - a theme that moves like an underlying current through our daily actions.

Heems

NAV and Heems, visible South Asian artists that have infiltrated the mainstream of hip-hop, have felt all-too-comfortable using the N-Word. In the wider context of oppression, this conversation should be too easy to have. Yet, in a culture that is still dominated by white faces, visible brown ones represent billions and carry with them an added weight of responsibility. Every time a mainstream artist like NAV uses the n-word in his lyrics, he's made it permissible for his scores of South Asian fans to do the same.

Heems, another South Asian rapper who was one of the first visible ones in hip-hop, was called out for using the n-word in 2015. During the Q&A part of his lecture at the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), he was confronted about using the word. Though he has since apologised, the stance that brown artists always seem to have is one of equivalency with Black artists. We cannot claim the same struggles of Black people who have been abused and vilified with it.

"Singh seems to throw a costume of Black skin over her brown one in popular videos. Whether through her attire or mimicking of rappers, the persona she puts on borders on minstrelsy. She chooses when to be Desi as all her magazine covers show her unbraided with flowing long hair."

Co-opting Black culture for our own benefit is a constant in South Asian communities. YouTube superstar Lilly Singh and Rupi Kaur, the Indian-Canadian writer, poet and viral sensation, have most famously benefited significantly from the appropriation of Black culture. Singh rose to fame on the back of her YouTube channel ' Superwoman.' With her channel accumulating 14 million subscribers along with 2 billion views, Singh is one of the world's highest paid YouTube stars. She is clearly an aspirational model for South Asians everywhere.

Yet, she's been blinded by her own success, claiming that she invented the word "bawse" - the etymology of which is so embedded in AAVE [African American Vernacular English] that it's strewn throughout countless rap lyrics dating back to the mid 1990's. Singh seems to throw a costume of Black skin over her brown one in popular videos. Whether through her attire or mimicking of rappers, the persona she puts on borders on minstrelsy. She chooses when to be Desi as all her magazine covers show her unbraided with flowing long hair. There's a pattern in her actions. She continues to exploit Black culture and artists in ensuring her own success.

Rupi Kaur's debut book milk & honey sold 2.5 million copies worldwide. A collection of prose and poetry, it also spent over a year on the New York Best Sellers List. But Kaur has allegedly unashamedly stolen from celebrated Black London-based poet Nayirrah Waheed. Waheed even approached Kaur on Tumblr a year prior to Kaur's book release. She was met with no response. Despite her rise to success, Kaur has not cited Waheed as an influence. She refuses to see the parallels in their work - silence is complicity.

Lilly Singh

This mentality of co-opting, of stealing culture with ease while erasing or not respecting the people who created it seeps down to citizens everywhere. It's reflected in how South Asian shop-keepers act when Black customers walk in. It's visible in how immigrant parents will perceive Black neighbourhoods. It's what makes the behaviour of Indian mobs assaulting African Nationals in a mall with rubbish bins, billiard cues and bats normal. Mobs like these have stripped a Tanzanian woman in Bangalore, India; killed a Congolese man in New Delhi while vicious rumours about Black people - including cannibalism and drug dealing - spread like wildfire through Indian communities.

There is a lot to dissect within the sphere of anti-blackness in the South Asian community. I've been guilty of it myself, exemplified by my conditioned use of the n-word in my adolescence, my co-option of black culture since immigrating to Canada. I'm happy to dust off my skeletons that I've hung for so long in the closet while dissecting these issues.

Over the course of the next several weeks, I will be analysing how anti-blackness works in the South Asian community. How the correlation between certain factors are the causation of this racism. The discussion of symptoms of this anti-blackness will range from Gandhi's racist views to Mindy Kaling's brother to the n-word to much, much more. South Asians are all to happy to perpetuate the cycle of anti-blackness for our own benefit than repair our views. Let's help fix that.
Part two of this series: Blackface and anti-Blackness in Bollywood - an endemic problem Part three of this series: The co-opting of Black culture in the South Asian diaspora, hip hop and the n-word
Dhruva Balram is an Indian-Canadian freelance journalist exploring interests in pop culture, music, communities, societal issues, and South Asian identity, Dhruva is currently based in London, UK.

Follow @dhruvabalram
If you enjoyed reading this article, help us continue to provide more! Media Diversified is 100% reader-funded - you can subscribe for as little as £5 per month here or support us via Patreon here

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Anti-blackness in South Asian communities - how do we break the cycle?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In the first of a series exploring the issue, Dhruva Balram discusses the history and social implications of colourism in South Asia and diaspora communities, and how this relates to anti-Blackness worldwide. Colourism, and its close relative anti-Blackness, is a pervasive scourge that underpins any notion of progress the South Asian community attempts to make....

# data[].attributes.headline
Anti-Blackness in the Asian community needs to be actively dismantled

# data[].attributes.subject
Anti-Blackness in the Asian community needs to be actively dismantled

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Without a doubt, the pan-Asian community has faced and continues to face racism, discrimination and xenophobia in America. However, that does not mean the pan-Asian community is the only victim of such mistreatment. In fact, anti-blackness and colorism run deep in our culture, despite the history of Black and Asian/Pacific Islander Americans fighting together for social justice in the 1960s. While those achievements helped Asian/Pacific Islander Americans gain many freedoms, Black folks are still experiencing harsh discrimination that can often be found within our own Asian communities. With the death of George Floyd (where one of the police officers complicit in his death was Tou Thao, a Hmong man), and the surge in movements like Black Lives Matter, it is incredibly crucial that we, the Asian/Pacific Islander (API) community, can understand and acknowledge our own discrimination against the Black community.

It truly hurts to continue to see people commit such wrongs against Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC). But merely saying that we should address the anti-Blackness sentiment in our society with only an apology barely scratches the surface. One of the main reasons there is such a chasm formed between the two communities is because of the model minority myth; stereotypes set by white Americans to pit Asian Americans against other BIPOC. Even then, the model minority myth tends to overlook many other lesser-known and struggling ethnicities in the pan-Asian diaspora as there is a large disparity in support and resources for them.

The model minority myth entails that there are fundamental traits in Asians that propel them to academic and financial success in such a way that makes them more acceptable to white Americans. Capitalist America would instead have the Asian community stay subservient, unassuming, and silent in order to reap the benefits of acceptance and privilege. It is more common than you think to hear older generations say, "Why can't Black people work hard like the Asians to become successful?" and pin the problem on a poor work ethic. But this comes out of misrepresentation and shallow understanding of the situation. This comparison between two minorities only serves to harm as it oversimplifies the problem of systemic racism. It also dismisses the fact that Asians living in the United States benefit from the privileges fought for by both the Black and Asian communities coming together to fight for rights, equality, and genuine acceptance throughout history.

It is essential to realize that the API community's anti-blackness does not exist entirely at a systemic institutional level. Rather, it manifests itself in a day to day aspect through colorism, classism, appropriation of Black culture and policing Black bodies. While I was growing up, and still to this day, my friends and relatives in the Vietnamese community enforce beauty standards that glorify Eurocentric features, such as pale porcelain skin, and consider darker skin tones ugly and low class. They also associate Black men as aggressive and dangerous, dismissing their humanity. They knowingly or unknowingly fell into the model minority myth by keeping silent at the atrocity afflicted upon Black folks around them to be more accepted by white Americans.

This problem has persisted for ages, but now more than ever, with the death of George Floyd and countless others with him, the anti-Blackness in the Asian community needs to be actively dismantled. It is not guilt accompanied by a simple apology that will lead us to the right side of history. We need to discuss what has been going on around us. It can be difficult, particularly if you are conversing with immigrant or refugee family members and peers. It is important to remember that the suffering of Black folks does not invalidate other people of color's experiences, but rather, to understand that there is a gap in vocabulary and frame of reference due to language and cultural barriers that will require a nuanced discussion.

We can achieve justice, peace, and freedom through solidarity. This means taking the steps necessary to unlearn the harmful behaviors and concepts that remain in our lives. It means doing the hard work of educating yourself with plenty of resources available, listening to Black folks, and showing up for them. That can be done through signing petitions, e-mails, calls to your political representatives, and donations to causes that need your support. Take action over showing guilt and fight against anti-Blackness and systemic racism. Use your privilege and your voice to advocate for Black lives. The change you want to see starts within you.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Anti-Blackness in the Asian community needs to be actively dismantled | International Examiner

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Without a doubt, the pan-Asian community has faced and continues to face racism, discrimination and xenophobia in America. However, that does not mean the pan-Asian community is the only victim of such mistreatment. In fact, anti-blackness and colorism run deep in our culture, despite the history of Black and Asian/Pacific Islander Americans fighting together for [...]

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
TERM PAPER DUE 2nd August 5pm - Google Docs

# data[].attributes.headline
Selling whiteness? – A critical review of the literature on marketing and racism

# data[].attributes.subject
Selling whiteness? – A critical review of the literature on marketing and racism