30 Days Writing Series: Melanin Popping?

I struggle with a lot of insecurities.

I have come a very long way now, but I used to be the most insecure about my body. I prance around freely nowadays and I’m pretty sure that there are people who would like me to know that a certain dress doesn’t really flatter my figure but it is very evident that I don’t care.

I’m glad that I’ve gotten to this place of freedom and body positivity; I wish I could say the same about being dark skinned

A few days ago, one of my girlies asked a random question as to why no one uses dark skinned models for their glow oil ads and posters and my heart sunk an inch because I had recently been shopping for a new body moisturizer and I noticed this too. Now, I do not blame the vendors. The truth is almost no girl shops for body mosisturizers without thinking a bit about ‘toning’.

Our default sense of beauty is light skinned.

I genuinely cannot say if it is due to the European colonization of most of the world. I have often wondered if things were this way before the white man came or if peharps there were no light skinned persons before they came. I kind of understand the bias, I have found the features of a light skinned face to be more pronounced and the darker the skin, the more the need for leaning in.

Before you say “But what about melanin popping?” Is dark skin beautiful? Yes. Are dark skinned people considered beautiful? It is hard to say. It is every day we still hear things like ‘tar baby’ and make jokes about a dark skinned couples giving birth to charcoal or black polish. When women complain about skin roughness or dullness, it is a given to understand that part of the problem is they feel it is darker than that it ought to be. I like to talk about dark skinned women more because for men, no one really seems to care about their complexion except it is banter. When I was in my mid teens, I did try out modelling and one thing was for sure, a dark skinned model is not usually the first choice, except it is a socio-political statement. P.s: Please, don’t bring up Naomi Campbell if you can’t prove to me that she isn’t the rule’s exception.

I have been light skinned three times in my life. Haha. Does that make sense? I have in the past lightened my skin to a point that I would pass strangers and get called ‘oyibo’. I have tried to build my confidence and stay dark skinned but there are nights, I convince myself that this isn’t my true skin colour. Again, I’ll like to repeat that our default perception of beauty is light skinned. Look at the picture of a light skinned and dark skinned woman and see yourself mentally jump through hoops to rationalize the light skinned woman as more beautiful or pick the dark skinned woman as the prettier in pretention.

My light skinned friends will usually lie to themselves; not me, talking about how they wish they were dark because ‘black dont crack’. Black does cracks honey, and even though we suffer from as many skin complications as light skinned girls, they find a way to say they are more prone to it (there is mo scientific or social proof) You’ll also hear things like “when I’m stressed, my skin turns dark” and I really want to ask them what they think happens to mine “glitter?”. Somehow, it is okay for lighter people to use lightening creams but once a darker person uses it ‘bleaching!’. ‘Darkie’ is not a compliment, whether you are in Nigeria or India and no one really wants to be the darkest in the room.

The truth is I honestly understand that this bias is already strong within most of our minds, mine included and this might go on for centuries. I also understand that enforcing inclusivity brings about representation; which can be a good thing but at the end of the day is still just a socio-political statement. My ‘besiege' is that next time you see that dark skinned lady trying desperately to look lighter or you see that ‘before and after testimonial of a skin care product or your best friend’s sister pursues the sun rays to take pictures, understand that it isn’t a simple matter of ‘black is beautiful' or self esteem issues. It is that, no matter the confidence you pose on the run way, if your heels keep tripping you, you might have to take if off to make a good walk.

Honorary yans: The statement ‘light skinned people are only attractive, no beautiful’ belongs to the gutter and should be buried there.