"You're pretty for a dark-skin girl"
"I wouldn't date anyone darker than you"
"You don't have good hair, your hair's nappy"
"Dark skin's are so loud and ghetto"
"You don't act like the others, you know? You're black but not black black"
"I want mixed babies"
"You like white boyz don't you"
Each of these statements I have heard throughout my life. Either from family or my peers at school. All of these are anti-black and colorist sentiments that were birthed from the racism our enslaved ancestors endured which was so pervasive that it impacted how black people see ourselves within our community.
These fallacies are still engrained in our society especially the black community and historically and presently are being perpetuated and passed down from generation to generation.
If you've seen my Instagram stories, this is why I am such a HUGE supporter of The Grapevine on YouTube. That was the first place and exposure I had to a discussion-based panel that tackled issues such as anti-blackness and colorism. I had no idea what these words meant but overtime I watched and educated myself and even expanded my vocabulary a bit (lol).
I had to unlearn a lot of the anti-black thoughts and beliefs I held, not knowing how damaging it was to me and how I viewed myself as a black woman. Many of the preceding statements you read at the opening of this blog post are some things that I've believed due to socialization or was directly told by others. Thankfully, I have now reached a point of perpetual self-love and appreciation for those that look similar to me.
Whether you have Type 2 or 3 curls or tightly coiled Type 4c hair, ALL HAIR, IS GOOD HAIR...period. As long as your hair is healthy and nourished, it is good hair. All shades of brown are beautiful and there shouldn't be a preference for a certain type. Colorism and texturism dehumanize people and condense to a form as mere objects, rather than people.
I truly believe that change can come if we continue to voice how wrong these two things are. Just like racism can be unlearned, anti-blackness can also be unlearned as well. Black people deal with a plethora of issues from the outside, the last thing we need is to have conflicts within.
E.W.
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