SKIN BLEACHING

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4-22HfgZI4

Growing up as an Asian in the Uk I have always been aware of skin lightening creams such as Fair and Lovely. I remember as a child that their advertisements would pop up in Asian magazines, adverts etc. A white looking Asian woman with long flowing hair, bright eyed and happy. To me it wasn't anything unusual let alone sinister.

Many girls growing up around me used these creams, many of my Asian and black friends had been given the creams by older sisters, cousins and even mothers. It seemed to be an accepted part of a coloured woman's beauty regime. As normal as brushing your teeth in the morning.

Luckily for me my parents never adhere to such madness and I missed out on the whole mother to daughter passing down of the skin bleaching cream. How ever being born in a generally light skinned light eyed family I was considered by many of my peers to be lucky. Growing up I could never understand why this was, often girls would sigh and say they wished they had the same skin tone or eyes as me. It left me puzzled and a little amused. For me I thought them all beautiful from the light to the dark.

It's a big part of Asian and black culture to put too much emphasis on skin tone, often incorrectly believing that light skin leads to better jobs, finding a better partner, greater success and popularity. We have to wonder why we associate success with lighter skin. Is it because we cannot shake out colonial pasts and believe that the closer we resemble our masters the more their status and success will rub off on us? or is it something that can be traced back even further. I personally believe that colonialism plays a major part in our belief that lighter is brighter. However I believe roots existed before that.
In rural Asian and African countries the poor work the fields, on the land in the blazing sun day in day out resulting in darker skins, while the rich and the royalty sat in canopy's and grand summer houses sheltered from the sun. Servants standing over them with sun umbrellas. I believe that we have always had in us this belief that poverty is associated with dark skin, while riches and comfort with whiter skin. All colonialism did was confirm this for us.

So ok we are talking about the past now, how does this affect women today, the feudal system is not what it used to be, people have emigrated all over the world, white people have started tanning yet we still associate lighter skin tones with success. It's something that will take time to break down.Years of brainwashing cannot be so easily undone. I luckily had a mother that was progressive for her time and understood the dangers of bleaching, in her 3 daughters she has instilled a belief to love what you are whether its light or dark it is what God gave you, morals and ethics which we will pass down to our daughters thus breaking this chain of self mutilation. I am sure many young women are now wisening up to the manipulation of skin bleaching and will break their own chains.

As a photographer I make a point of not whitening or darkening my models. It is important for me to convey to my clients that they are all beautiful, a shade change is not going to enhance their beauty. Their beauty is who they are...it is not defined by anything. I think as women of colour we need to embrace and love our selves a little more. We need to break the bonds of stereotypes and presumptions and understand we are more than a skin shade, we are stronger then a colour chart. We are we.

So please understand, if I do a shoot for you I will be offended if you ask me to change your shade, and please do not be offended when I tell you you are lovely as you are xxx