Colorism : When Being Black Is More Than A Ethnic Group


You would think in 2018 we would be a lot more aware.  Sadly I realized for myself that not every black person are actually Africans or African American. I came across a gorgeous dark skin Latina name Amara La Negra on the premiere season of Love & Hip hop Miami. I for the 1st time heard the term "Afro Latina." I had no idea that there were Latinas who were dark skin but weren't African. Sounds insane, but there are lots of others who had no clue. Did we not know,  or are we finally starting to listen?

 Amara La Negra who is 100% Latina had to provide pictures of herself and parents to shut down haters who accused her of darkening her skin.

The term colorism has also been going around due to Amara story on Love & Hip Hop Miami.  Racism &, Colorism are two different things that I think some people think are the same. Yes similar, but different.

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"Colorism" are discriminatory acts against people based on the color of their skin.. For example brown skin. 
"Racism" is being prejudiced for your racial status.. For example African American. 
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"Afro Latina Says Identifying As Just Latina is Anti-Black"

There are other ethic groups whos race is black, but it doesn't mean they're actually African Americans. Afro Latinas are more known in Haiti, Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Puerto Rico. This may explain the lack of knowing here in the U. S.  Normally when you see a black person you automatically think they're African American.  When it comes to Afro Latinas most have said their own culture are responsible for putting one another down. The traditional Latinas looks like Jennifer Lopez.
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Dravidian's also come in different shades, mostly living in southern parts of India. The people up north India have fairer skin and are descendants of Aryans.



Being Indian and dark skin has its own challenges. It depends on the type of family you have. I read a article where one young lady talked about her aunt and uncle suggested skin lighting cream for her. She eventually let it get to her and started using bleaching creams. For a young child being told you should use skin lightning cream is something that will tear any womans self esteem down. 


South Asians deal with a lot of negativity from family members and peers all because of their darker skin too. Whiter skin is looked highly upon in some Asian countries. In Thailand tourists have noticed the whiter your skin is,  the better you were treated. In some Asian countries, darker skin is considered to be poor. Insane right?  Unfortunately in their eyes it isn't racism, it's what their culture standards have showed them. 

Racism is real and hurtful for me just being African American. What my peers fail to notice is colorism in our own culture. 



Colorism also exists in the black community. Many African Americans don't talk much about it, but it exists. Light skin vs dark skin.  The light skin girls in the urban communities were always considered more beautiful than the dark skin girls. It's not true, both are equally beautiful. For some men their idea of beauty is what they see in the rap videos. Long hair,  red bone. 

Back during slavery, "House Negros" was a term white slave owners used to describe lighter African Americans. They were considered to be more beautiful, and smarter just because their skin pigment was closer to theirs. It made some lighter skin slaves think they were better than the "Field Negros" who did hard labor in the yard. To keep it real,  in reality everybody was slaves with no damn freedom. So who wins? 

I am glad this topic was a big discussion and still is. We confuse racism a lot with colorism. Yes they both are wrong.  No one should be judged or mistreated due to their skin color or ethic group. I hope you enjoyed this post.  If you have any stories please contact me.  I am open to learn and hear your stories. 

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