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Colorism is a taboo topic in the African American community. Colorism is the pattern of treating people differently based on skin tone (Russell, Wilson, Hall, 2013). During slavery blacks possessing dark skin worked in the fields and blacks possessing light skin were allowed to work in the master's house. Unfortunately, the early 1900's presented blacks with more inequalities concerning the color complex. During this era, blacks with a lighter complexion were provided opportunities to earn a college degree, maintain a successful career, and not face as many obstacles that darker skin blacks endured. Many people of African descent are reluctant to discuss this topic because it uncovers too many agonizing feelings. Colorism prevents many blacks with Afro-centric characteristics from being comfortable in their own skin. The reason is because historically, America does not embrace Afro-centric characteristics, such as nappy or kinky hair, wide noses, thick lips, and dark skin.
One example of how negatively stigmatized blacks are concerning this subject is an incident that occurred in 2007 with conservative talk show host Don Imus. When Imus, a nationally known radio broadcaster, referred to the predominately black female basketball players of Rutgers University as "nappy-headed hoes," many African Americas lashed out and demanded that he be taken off the air. People who supported Imus believed that his punishment was too harsh because he was exercising freedom of speech. However, if there was a wider understanding among most Americans on how colorist and derogatory terms impact black people, then his comments might have been received differently. In this article, I will discuss how the color complex and colorism are painful and disturbing topics for African Americans to face.
In Donald Bogle's (1989) Tom 's, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, & Bucks, the author depicts the stereotypes that were portrayed in television in the early 20th century. Bogle mentioned five stereotypes: the tom, the coon, the tragic mulatto, the mammy, and the brutal black buck. The negative stigmas linked to the stereotypes influenced not only people of different races but also black people and how they perceived other blacks; especially those with a darker skin tone. African Americans with darker skin tones were affected more by these stereotypes because they were the people who were usually portrayed negatively.
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