produced by Laurise McMillian; produced by Rissa Papillion; edited by Rissa Papillion.
Black women often experience discrimination based on their appearance. One might assume that the same judgments apply to all Black people across the board, but colorism creates a divide between Black women with lighter and darker skin.
In the latest episode of Go Off Sis, three Black women get honest about light-skin privilege. "I am here to tell you that light-skin privilege does exist," Laurise McMillian says. "I think light-skin privilege is when light-skin people, like myself, are given preferential treatment or seen as softer, more feminine, or more approachable than our darker-skin peers," Ashley Edwards explains. "We’re seen as less Black."
This privilege is apparent in many aspects of life, including at school, the office, and even in relationships. "I think there’s definitely an advantage with guys and dating," Hinton says. McMillan echoes this sentiment saying, "I've had guys tell me that, 'Oh I don't date Black girls, but I date light-skin girls.' At what point does light skin stop being Black?"
Hinton points out that erasing light-skin privilege starts within the Black community. "I think it's on us to identify where notions of beauty come from and to be careful in the ways that we are assigning value based on that," she says. Click play to hear more of what each woman has to say about colorism in the Black community.