MISSeducation
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July 26, 2011
July 09, 2011
June 15, 2011
Black Beauty - an oxymoron?
In the article, "Black women ugly? Says who? " Granderson responds to a post on Psychology Today titled, "Why Are Black Women Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women?" The post drew a great deal of criticism and was removed from the website. Highlights from Granderson's commentary on this post:
-Culture publications such as People and Maxim struggle to include black women in their annual most-beautiful listings, but at least their editors don't try to justify their choices under the guise of science.
-The westernized standard of beauty has not only haunted some black women into buying cream to bleach their skin but prompted some Asian-Americans to undergo surgery to make their eyes more European looking.
-A system that declares one set of physical attributes as the standard to which a multiethnic society must adhere is destructive.
-The statistics say 42% of black women have never been married.
-Their sass is a constant source of comedic relief, but rarely are they seen as complete human beings, to be romanced or capable of being vulnerable.
-The wounds that hurt the most don't come from enemy lines but friendly fire. It comes from black men who know enough to respect the black women who are their mothers but not the black women who are their lovers. They fail to see the disconnect.
-The truth is Kanazawa's post doesn't hold a candle to the amount of damage black men continue to do to the image of black women ourselves.
After reading this article it was interesting for me, being black and white, to consider whether black women are considered beautiful. I have heard some men and women say they think black women are beautiful and exotic. As little boys, my husband and his brother used to dream of marrying tall, dark, beautiful black women with large afros. But then I think about how black women view themselves. Me, for example. I can have really nice curly hair, but I prefer the look (and maintenence) of my hair when it's straight. I have gotten compliments on my curly hair, but I always feel like it's not as pretty as when it is straight.
In 1954, psychologist Dr. Kenneth Clark conducted an experiment to see how black children viewed race. In this study he put two dolls in front of each child. The dolls were identical in everyway except for their skin color. One doll was white, the other black. Clark asked the children to pick which doll they liked best and the overwhelming majority chose the white doll. This was not too surprising back in 1954 given segregation laws. Recently, a young women conducted the same experiment. She documented this experiment in a documentary called "A Girl Like Me"
What do you think?
-Do you find yourself thinking women of color are not as beautiful?
-If you do find black women beautiful, what physical characteristics seem attractive? Do white women share those physical characteristics?
-What other characteristics define beauty?
-How does the clark doll experiment make you feel? How does this affect the way you would raise your children?
-Culture publications such as People and Maxim struggle to include black women in their annual most-beautiful listings, but at least their editors don't try to justify their choices under the guise of science.
-The westernized standard of beauty has not only haunted some black women into buying cream to bleach their skin but prompted some Asian-Americans to undergo surgery to make their eyes more European looking.
-A system that declares one set of physical attributes as the standard to which a multiethnic society must adhere is destructive.
-The statistics say 42% of black women have never been married.
-Their sass is a constant source of comedic relief, but rarely are they seen as complete human beings, to be romanced or capable of being vulnerable.
-The wounds that hurt the most don't come from enemy lines but friendly fire. It comes from black men who know enough to respect the black women who are their mothers but not the black women who are their lovers. They fail to see the disconnect.
-The truth is Kanazawa's post doesn't hold a candle to the amount of damage black men continue to do to the image of black women ourselves.
After reading this article it was interesting for me, being black and white, to consider whether black women are considered beautiful. I have heard some men and women say they think black women are beautiful and exotic. As little boys, my husband and his brother used to dream of marrying tall, dark, beautiful black women with large afros. But then I think about how black women view themselves. Me, for example. I can have really nice curly hair, but I prefer the look (and maintenence) of my hair when it's straight. I have gotten compliments on my curly hair, but I always feel like it's not as pretty as when it is straight.
In 1954, psychologist Dr. Kenneth Clark conducted an experiment to see how black children viewed race. In this study he put two dolls in front of each child. The dolls were identical in everyway except for their skin color. One doll was white, the other black. Clark asked the children to pick which doll they liked best and the overwhelming majority chose the white doll. This was not too surprising back in 1954 given segregation laws. Recently, a young women conducted the same experiment. She documented this experiment in a documentary called "A Girl Like Me"
What do you think?
-Do you find yourself thinking women of color are not as beautiful?
-If you do find black women beautiful, what physical characteristics seem attractive? Do white women share those physical characteristics?
-What other characteristics define beauty?
-How does the clark doll experiment make you feel? How does this affect the way you would raise your children?
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