Week 5

     The way colorism and racism are related in media are fairly similar. We often see dark skinned individuals not getting much attention for their achievements in media and you also see dark-skinned people getting hate or discriminated against for having dark skin. There was this saying I heard before it was, "If it ain't white, it ain't right." I believe this is the perfect example of colorism. As well as racism. The article from The Wrap tells the story of a young biracial women who gave up her own position in the movie Black Panther because she felt too light to play the role. (The Wrap, 2018) Amandla Stenberg reasons by saying that, "‘Black Panther’ is one of the only films that we have that has darker-skinned representation." Stenberg comment itself got some backlash for addressing the colorism within role picking. People in the media felt she made those remarks because she wants to make it all about her and felt she was trying to downplay darker skinned people. This is a prime example of why if dark skinned people were more represented in media, things like this could be avoided. You also see this type of behavior in a lot of Madea movies by Tyler Perry. Madea is fairly popular among the African-American crowd but some thinks it's weird for lighter skinned individuals to play a part in the movie/play. 

    I think the main reason why people may endorse colorism is through media and also through family. I say this because I don't think many reason their being racist or have biases against others skin tones. It's unconscious at time when it's specifically directed to their own race or people who look like them. In the podcast "I'm Not Racist, I'm Argentine," it talks about how it's mainly about how Europeans believed the indigenous individuals were inferior. This was all under the assumption that white was better. It truly dates back in history and that mindset is carried down in history. People believe that because they have "x" race as a friend or family they aren't racist. It's like (NPR, 2017) Celia Lacayo says, "we continue to see these racial regimes historically and contemporarily privilege whiteness." This statement also ties to how families perpetuate colorism. For example, my family believes dark skinned people are superior but realize we have less privilege than those with lighter skin. I think minorities and people of color in general face colorism in their own home. For example, for Asians it dates back far in history where whiter the skin, the more beautiful you were. That's why there's whitening creams/serums which could be actually harmful to the body. But they would do anything to be beautiful and feel beautiful. 
    

    Colorism has an significant impact on youth especially through media. Media perpetuates lighter skin more than those who are dark. The message is clear because once you see a dark skinned people on tv, it leaves kids questioning if it's good or bad to have dark skin when all they've seen or perceived is light skin. There is competition in families on children with lighter skin vs those with darker skin. Karina in the Wilder & Cain article shares her story as an adolescent on colorism. (Wilder & Cain, 2011) Karina shares how parents were in "competition" with each other, "you know my child came out lighter than your child or, my child had better hair, you know little things like that. And I didn’t notice  it  when I was younger." This lead to the children fighting over who was prettier and better in terms of their skin and hair type. Children who are a victim to this soon will start to be more concerned about their own skin type nd hair type. Children hear these things without families actually realizing how their own conversations are endorsing colorism and how that might affect their child.