Skin Lightening Debate 1 Response

Indian men are frequently becoming the targets of the skin lightening cream industry because of the notion of colorism. A man’s worth is primarily valued by his career; therefore, the idea that lighter complexions allow them to have more privileges or opportunities is appealing, especially in a competitive job market. Men may want to have an advantage over their co-workers because they want to improve their employment positions and their social economic statuses, even if it means being exposed to hazardous toxins. I believe that Indian men’s perception of skin color is predominantly affected by hegemonic Western imagery and media. In all reality, Western corporations do not want to adopt the beliefs of others but merely want to sell them their products. Western corporations influence and control consumer trends by inexplicitly stating that “light-skinned men are more intelligent and martial as opposed to darker-skinned men who lack intelligence and masculinity”. Thus, globalization does have a direct impact on Indian men by altering their self-perceptions and making them believe that “white is better” or in this case, “light is better”.

Week 7, Module 3 Assignment 1: Skin Lightening Debate 1 (Indian Men)

Debate #1: Skin Lightening for Indian Men (Racism or Realism?)

In 2010, Vaseline launched a skin lightening cream for Indian men that promised "Visible fairness in just two weeks." As we learned in lecture and Evelyn Nakano Glenn's reading, the origins of colorism in India are obscure and may be traced as far back to the migrations of Aryans into India during the Vedic period. Furthermore, they are certainly linked to an associated of darker skin with labor and lighter skin with the types of intellectual and/or domestic labor associated with higher castes within ancient caste order in the Vedic system. Nevertheless, as Nakano Glenn demonstrates, it was during the era of British rule (roughly 1757-1947) that colorism was consolidated and institutionalized and fair skin was turned into a structural privilege. After the fall of the British Empire, the social stigma of darker skin still remained, but more so for women rather than men, since women often few means than marriage to determine social position.

So then why are Indian men now emerging as a market for skin lightening cream in the era of economic liberalization in India under globalization? Do you believe this is the cynical manipulation of racist ideologies by multinational corporations like Unilever (the corporation that owns Vaseline, and that by the way is responsible for some of the racist colonial soap ads we studied from the 19th century) OR is it simply an an acknowledgement of an aesthetic preference in a globalized world dominated by Western media and in which socially mobile Indian men are going to have to move?

Click here to read more about Vaseline's Indian Skin Lightening App for Men

Then read some of the reader comments on the following:
http://jezebel.com/5585906/vaseline-crowdsources-racism-with-new-skin+whitening-app
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/07/16/facebook_apps_gone_rogue

Week 7, Module 3 Assignment 1: Skin Lightening Debate #2 (Skin Bleaching in Jamaica)

In "Yearning for Lightness: Transnational Circuits in the Marketing and Consumption of Skin Lighteners," Nakano Glenn argues that "colorism is just one of the negative inheritances of European colonialism. As we studied in lecture by looking at 19th-c. soap advertisements, "European colonists... associate[d] Blackness with primitiveness, lack of civilization, unrestrained sexuality, pollution, and dirt" (167). In the slave societies of the colonial Caribbean, colonialists used detailed gradations of skin color to divide and control populations of African and mixed-race slaves, free peoples, indentured servants, Creoles, and Europeans. The institutionalization of racialism into the everday life of colonial society, as a method of rule as well as the signposts of seemingly mundane social relations, had broad and deep implications. As the famous postcolonial thinker, Frantz Fanon argued (speaking of the experience of living under French rule on the island of Martinique), "cultural values are internalized, or 'epidermalized' into consciousness, creating a fundamental disjuncture between the black man's consciousness and his body" (Deepika Bahri).

Nakano Glenn discusses in detail the use of skin lighteners in contemporary Africa today. Some of the same dynamics are at play in the contemporary Caribbean. Watch the following video and then comment on the questions below:

1) Nakano Glenn argues that in the African contexts, the use of skin lighteners has been increasing among "modernized and cosmopolitan African women" (169). Which groups does this film argue are the primary consumers for skin lightening creams? Why do you think modern and cosmopolitan young people are emerging as the primary consumers for skin lightening creams in this globalized era? Reread p. 169 before offering your thoughts. 

2) The comments from youtube users seems to emphasize the need for "self love" as a corrective to the "skin bleaching epidemic." Do you agree that teaching a discourse of self love is the answer or is this a more entrenched problematic that needs a more complicated solution on a number of fronts? What fronts would those be and would might some of these solutions look like?

Response to Group 3's Project Blog

The women whose lives were documented in the film Maquilapolis and numerous other maquila workers are mere cogs or minor instruments of labor within the large organizations of US owned corporations. The women were and still are considered just that, cheap labor. They were rarely appreciated or valued for their modest work but instead were monitored, belittled, and harassed. Moreover, the maquila workers did not have stable jobs because they could easily be replaced by others, predominantly women, in Mexico who sought sources of income to help support their families. For this reason maquila workers were not able to express their earnest feelings about their job assignments or work environments. They either dealt with the situation and current conditions or were unemployed. The maquiladoras required much toil and effort on behalf of the women, which often led to overtime or prolonged work hours. As mentioned in Gendered Violence: Murder in the Maquiladoras, women near the town of Juarez, Chihuahua would end their shifts late at night and it is then that they would disappear.  As they headed home after work or to bars to alleviate some stress, “many young women and girls would be attacked, raped, and frequently murdered”; but, why were these girls the main targets or victims within maquiladora cities? Femicide frequently occurred within the city of Juarez due to the sexualization of women within maquiladoras and the many misconceptions that people had about them. Women within these border cities tried to make a living but in doing so were forced to sexually please their managers or supervisors and form relationships with them, causing others to view and act negatively towards them.