Is there prejudice within the black community against the darker-skinned by the lighter-skinned?

Question

I've often heard this referenced, but I don't know much about the origins of it or where to find out more about it. Where would I look to learn more?

Answer 1

not sure where to find info about it, but i do know of some kids in high school that had issues b/c they're parents were black and white.

see, the thing is, though, i can think of 2 kids who had problems b/c they were light-skinned due to one parent being white. however, there was a kid who was pretty popular and he was darker skinned but had a white parent.

i don't know. it's a tricky thing. i mean, why do any kids have problems growing up...is it b/c of the color of their skin or are they just being mean b/c of who they are.
i was picked on in school by white kids and i'm white...so explain that one.

interesting idea to research though.

take care.

Answer 2

Of course there is! It affects Asians and Hispanics in much the same manner between family members.

If you are talking about African-Americans and Native Americans, This phenomenon began when White Settlers came to the shores and during slavery in the Northern Hemisphere. This first stereotyping began for the purpose of divide and remain conquered.

Lighter skinned relatives were often given preferential treatment, and believed to be smarter, prettier less likely to commit crimes, and more adaptable to "polite" society.

The light skinned slaves had more market value as 'breeders" and often snubbed their darker kin even though they were all slaves. It still happens in our modern world. Most black Africans do not identify African Americans as their own.

Answer 3

You should read the Willie Lynch letter, written by a slave owner in Barbados, he talks about different psychological means to "divide" slaves from each other, by separating the lighter ones from darker. The old story goes that lighter slaves (often offspring of the "master") were raised in the house and kept closer to the white family as maids, butlers, and nannies. Thus, a new caste system was created among the slaves of the plantation, where the lighter house slaves thought of themselves as better and prettier than the dark "field" slaves.
Over time, generations of these lighter blacks were able to gain more opportunities than their darker brethren because they either had blood connections to white families or could pass for white and lead a double sided life.
If you look back to the first Freedman during the mid-19th century, many of the most educated and successful were lighter or of mixed race origin. Being light, for a long time meant distancing yourself from the black race, and thus elevated your status. Many Black Americans have been socialized to see lighter or fairer skinned blacks as better, or more attractive.(heard of the 70s phrase "if your light, you're alright, if your brown, stick around, but if your black, stay back! and the paper bag test used by social clubs/groups, if your were lighter than the paper bag, then you had a chance to be let in)
I think after the "black is beautiful" changes in the 70s, black people really began to recognize the obsession with light skin, and thus began the conflict you are referring to.
I think there is significant prejudice by all black people, dark and light, against darker skinned people. We have just been socialized to believe that light skin is better, and this stigma especially applies for women. Although there have been many dark skin male black actors (Djimon Houson, Wesley Snipes, Denzel Washington), most prominent black female entertainers are not very dark (Halle Berry, Beyonce, Gabrielle Union) so I think that dark skinned people have it somewhat harder, especially when it comes to being judges by appearances. I recommend these books if you want to explore this topic more.

The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother

Our Kind of People: Inside America's Black Upper Class by Lawrence Otis Graham

The Blacker The Berry by Wallace Thurman

The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man by James Weldon Johnson

The Color Complex by Kathy Russell

There's much more, but this is a complex issue, these books and the links can get you started.

Answer 4

in my community its the other way round. i've cried myself to sleep wishing i was a lot darker... got teased at school, even adults tend to be rude. i get questions like are you sure your mom didnt cheat on you dad with some white dude? its hell at times... then you have darker skinned people who deem lighter skinned blacks so highly. i just suppose all that matters is being a human no matter what you're coated in. look closely within your own community or ask around coz i'm not sure of sites offered on this topic. though it may be a sensetive issues for others. i've had to accept the light skin i am in and leave with the daily remarks... but i love it and have no problems any longer. and i would suggest those who are black (though not literaly) be proud to be in the hide they are in and not care about the hide someone else is in...

Answer 5

I have a really good friend who is African-American, and we had this talk one time. She did tell me that the darker skinned people thought that the lighter-skinned people were snobby. But that there is a prejudice between the two. It makes no sense but it did come from my friend who experienced it all her life.

Answer 6

YES. And it's not just confined to the USA. In India and all over Asia, color is very important. The Vietnamese consider themselves superior to Cambodians. Thailand used to be called Siam, a word the British got from the Burmese. In their language it refers to the dark skin of the Thai people.

Answer 7

Yes there is, whether those in my race will ever admit to someone not of the black community. It started back in slavery days. Of course anyone with any sense of hereditary and genes knows that a light-skinned black person has some form of white or European blood in them. Light-skinned blacks back then were treated somewhat better than dark-skinned blacks because the slave master knew which kids he had fathered simply by looking at them and would treat them better because they were his. They were still treated like slaves but sometimes given special privileges.

I consider myself black, but in essence black is only part of my genetic heritage. Both sides of my family start with a white slavemaster impregnating a slave. I have a great-great-great-great grandfather on boths side of my family who are white and my grandmothers black. But I also have a great-great-great grandmother who is Cherokee Indian, while her husband was Creole. People look at me and the last thing they think is that I am black and often ask what race or nationality I am. I am mistaken for someone of Latin descent many times (even a girl from Columbia thought I was from Mexico).

By some in the black community I would be called the proverbial "half-breed" or "house n*gger" because of my skin color. I have been called "light, bright, and damned near white" when I was a kid.

None of this matters to me because skin color only matters to those who fear what I can do and want to keep me oppressed and inferior because of what their opinion is of my race. Those are ignorant people and ignorance is something I do not tolerate and I am very good at tuning those folks out of my life.

Before I am any race, I am a child a God and that alone should cause everyone to know that I am capable of accomplishing large feats as long as God has spoken it over my life. You should fear me more being a child of God than my being any race.

Answer 8

i can only speak on my behalf but personally i am a very light skin girl and i love me that are much darker than me!

Answer 9

Probably. You don't have to be caucasian to be prejudiced.