by Elias A. Yabarow
Friday, January 01, 2010
What’s your definition of beautiful? Is it associated with skin tone? Is “light” skin the “right” skin? These are just a few of the questions that came to mind when this topic was brought to my attention.
So what’s the difference between light skin and dark skin Somalis? Nothing. It saddens to me see that as Somalis, we’re gradually adapting a very Westernized culture when it comes to the perception of beauty. Maybe it’s a question of location, and some of us try to imitate the inhabitants of the land in which we live in. Maybe if we all lived in Ghana, roasting our skin would be the cool thing to do. I think it’s ridiculous to see our people ignorantly perceive each other simply based on an individual’s skin tone. Furthermore, I find it absurd to see some of our women judged based on their shade, rather than their charismatic personalities. I truly believe that those who conceal their natural features do not lack beauty in any way, but self-esteem. Its 2009, and if your bleaching your skin ladies and gentlemen, c’mon son!
Somali girls
But in all sincerity, I know that the overwhelming majority in our community acknowledge the existence of this disease, although we may not own up to it. Of course I know a few people that don’t see shade of a person, but the reality is that many of us do, especially when it comes down to the opposite sex. You can’t imagine how many times I’ve heard “she’s beautiful, but she’s dark skinned. Or, “Warya, she was 5’5, light skinned, with a nice smile…did I tell you she was light skinned?” And surprisingly, I’ve heard this from people whom I’d thought would never say. They say light travels faster than sound. I guess that’s why some people seem bright until you hear them speak.
Just by addressing this, I feel that we as a people we are losing the values and beliefs of our culture, as the days go by. It’s obvious that mainstream media has a huge effect on our perception of “beautiful”, but to see this reiterated in our community, especially is the youth, is disappointing. Its even more disappointing seeing others mistreated or wrongfully critiqued based on their skin tone. Those people who think skin tone matters seriously need to wake up. If skin tone mattered, why isn’t President Shiekh Sharif light skinned? No, if skin tone mattered, why do we have an African American President? I hope this address clarified just a bit of the ignorance that exists in our community. Beauty is a lot more than just shade, and if you can’t see that, you’re a lot more than just colorblind.
Elias A. Yabarow
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