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You really have to get to the root of why some people have issues with dark skin. In my mom's family dark skin was prized because you aged better. LOL. That was the reason my grandmother was so fanatical about us staying out of the sun. She didn't always explain it but my mother sure did. I've got age spots... my dark skinned relatives still have that smooth even skintone and no wrinkles. At least I was blessed with the no wrinkle gene too. :cheer:
The vitamin D concern is very valid. My doctor has me on 50,000 IU a week. DH keeps telling me I need to go outside more but my allergies kick my behind. I can't do the yard thing so I've been spending more time at the pool with the kids so I've gotten a lot of sun. The difference in color between my winter and summer makeup is major.
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Now, I know a LOT about that... I started getting relaxers in my teens (after BEGGING my mom for it). She always told me, "Fe... you don't need a relaxer". Well, yeah, she was right... I stopped getting relaxers about 15 years ago, long before it become the cool thing to do. I definitely heard the "good hair" comment growing up...
You're right, those types of comments serve no real purpose but to divide us. I don't use those terms either...
millie58
Hair is another problem that divides us. "Good" Hair... Whenever I hear this, I tell people, "we all have good hair; just different textures".
My mother was not too keen on relaxers for me either, and my youngest sibling did not need, but she too begged our mother. Oh yea the colorism issues are in other cultures too. I tell the story once in a while about the grand aunt from the multiracial side who scoped my siblings and I out, and passed the remark about staying out of the sun. The only issue my grandmother had was to keep off my knees. so it would not get raggedy and rough. My oldest son was more into indoors interest lately, his legs which is the lightest part of his body were glowing. lol Even in the warmer months, he was not getting enough sun, so his Vitamin D levels were a bit low so we are in supplement mode as well.
nickchris
I still shake my head to see the color issue already ingrained in small children.
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I am soooo sick of this colorism issue. I've had 3 aa ladies "yell" at me (not really yell but they've gotten on me) about letting my babies get in the sun too much. Talk about trying to make someone feel like a bad mom.
They've told me that the natural color will never come back if I let them get more tanned.
At the same time, I don't want to give them some sort of disadvantage by being darker, But kids love being outside... how can you keep them indoors or in the shade all the time?!!
I just wish this issue would go away.
(PS nick, you need at least a 30!! :) )
Other than the spf aspect, I would not even make an issue about it. Especially when they are small, kids are more in tuned with mom and dads reaction. When folks try to give me baby advice, I smile and wave, say they have their sunscreen on.. thanks.Coming from a family of "blended" light and darker hues, and now with my own little family of the same. DD is a darker brown like dh and I, the boys are lighter brown. All 3 kids gets sunscreen applied, when the younger two play outside, especially when they go to the pool etc; At the pool or beach as the youngest, I used to put a hat on DD, I also pay attention to the back of their neck, tip of their ears. I don't pull DD under the umbrella, or make any differentiation kwim? Now when we check out skiing, we would focus on the same spf protection.Speaking of I found a clear gel by Bullfrog, no white residue. Of course to make things more complicated.. lol I have to check out how this particular product rate.[URL="http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2011sunscreen/"]Environmental Working Group's 2011 Sunscreen Report | EWG's Skin Deep[/URL]
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New face chosen by Loreal, maybe this will help their image after the photo shop issue. etc;:[URL="http://www.usmagazine.com/stylebeauty/news/model-liya-kebede-named-new-face-of-loreal-paris-2011206"]Model Liya Kebede Named New Face of L'Oreal Paris - Style & Beauty - UsMagazine.com[/URL]Now that I am at the decorating stage with the house, I mix my art and decoration up, but have my strategy. I found two cute pictures of a dark skinned little girl reading a book, playing. I placed them up on the hall wall by DDs room. I am also going to enlarge that famous picture of Naomi Sims profile, thinking of placing that in the media room.
We've been using the Walgreen's knockoff of the Neutrogena sunscreen that is SPF 70.
[url=http://www.neutrogena.com/product/ultra+sheer+body+mist+sunblock+spf+70.do?sortby=ourPicks]Neutrogena - Ultra Sheer Body Mist Sunblock SPF 70[/url]
Too many people mistakenly think dark skin can't get a sunburn. It may be harder to see but it is equally painful.
Nick
I hear you on the thing about your knees. My grandmother said to use lemons on our knees. No bug bites and etc because it could permanently mess up our skin. I always get a little upset when I see kids with messed up skin from infected bug bites that were never treated properly. It is not cute seeing grown women or men with permanent scars from mosquito bites. It looks bad no matter what shade you are... I carry Neosporin in my purse because that seems to heal injuries faster and bring the natural color back.
Wish I listened to my grandmother.. big time tom boy back then, so my knees are messed up. :DAs a little kid, I had 2 really bad bug bites.. big country bugs lol I remember needing antibiotics and wound care. The scars are by my ankle, and is finally fading. DD reacts as I did, she has band aids on the bites to keep the skin intact, and I am using neosporin
My knees are finally looking decent. I was that child who fell down a lot so my knees really took a beating. The color is now close to the surrounding skin. Those bugs in the country are awful. We had to come inside at a certain time because the mosquitos would tear you up. Don't forget all those fire ants. I stepped into a fire ant mound once at my grandparents house.
My grandfather had the most beautiful dark skin. He's one of the few people that I've ever seen who looked like he was the actual color black. Gma was light and had blue/gray eyes. My mom and her siblings ranged from Gma's color to Gpa's color. My oldest aunt was the only girl who had Gpa's coloring. She's the most positive person you would ever want to meet but she's had issues with men IMO. She lowered her standards and put up with stuff she shouldn't have and I'm pretty sure her skin color played a part of it. She's always had this need for validation from men that she was desirable. She would play the role of the woman that men didn't take out in public until she finally got married. I hate to see women fall into this trap. If a family does a good job of bolstering self-esteem you don't see women ending up like this no matter what society says is beautiful or not unless they are just hardheaded & won't listen. My mother had two sayings... "If I was living off likes I would have been dead a long time ago" and "I suits my customers." When I understood what they meant it changed how I felt about myself in relation to other people. Everyone doesn't have to like me and I shouldn't base my self worth on anyone liking me. I suits my customers applied mainly for dating for me... If a man doesn't like my hair, my skin color, my weight... he isn't the man for me and I'm not going to waste one minute of my energy pondering it. Keep it moving... That's one thing that some women like those in the video may not have been taught. They spend too much time worrying about those people who don't like them instead of recognizing & seeking out those who think they are fabulous. They use a blanket statement that black men don't find them attractive... wrong. The black men they are looking at are the wrong men. I know there are black men who prefer dark skinned women.
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