“Dude, Where’s My Melanin???”

M says:

I do get Cynthia’s point as well as those of others. I do think that all across the world people of color with “black” skin — not just African ancestry, have this same problem of accepting themselves as they are — nonwhite. I do think that in some countries and some populations, self acceptance is harder. People who look like Sammy Sosa before his transformation generally have physical features that most people around the world would not want to have. I say this because in my experience, having dark skin but nonkinky hair and non West African facial features would give you an equal or higher status than someone with light skin but West African facial features and kinky hair. I think that because colonialism put African at the bottom of all of the “black” people of the world, this group is usually the most denigrated of all of the people of color.

This need to look less dark, less nonwhite is all over the world. If you look at magazine and movies in places, where there are people with dark skin, African or Native American facial features, you only see white people. All of the Miss Indias are more white than anything else. This can also be said of Latin American novelas. Latina, an American magazine, has finally begun in the past two years having cover models that reflect the truth — Latina/o is an ethnic group comprised of multiple races — not just white people with tan skin and curvy bodies with thick accents. Skin bleaching is popular in central Asia (where people naturally have light skin), India, Jamaica, Ghana and everywhere else.

I think that Sammy’s transformation is just a more blatant expression of the self-hatred that lingers among many people of color to varying degrees. It is sad, and I think it reflects the racial hierarchy that still exists, where the closer you are to white and the less you are to West African (slave ancestors), the better you are in the eyes of the world. I also think that view is held by whites as well as people of color.

Dominique says:

Is it just me or does that first picture look like he’s wearing a mask?

Clnmike says:

Skin bleaching as used for whitening skin WILL MOST DEFINITELY SCAR the skin and more.

The chemicals used in skin bleaching like Hydroquinone or Mercury, reacts to sun light leadind to more darker pigmentation and pre-mature aging which then is treated by people by…….you guess it, more bleaching, thus a cycle is continued. By removing the color you become a GREATER risk for contracting skin cancer. There is a reason why you have color.

The rest goes like this.

“Prolonged use of Hydroquinone will thicken collegen fibres damaging the connective tissues. The result is rough blotchy skin leaving it with a spotty cavier appearance.”

“Mercury will slowly accumulate within the skin cells striping the skin of it’s natural pigment leaving behind the tell tale signs of gray/ blue pigmentation in the folds of the skin. In the long term the chemical will damage vital organs and lead to liver and kidney failure and mercury poisoning.”

Now this is of course is speaking about those who use it as an overall lightening cream, the subject of this article, and not treatment for dark spots. But since dark spots can be genetic than bleaching wont do anything but temporarily lighten the spots up and thus the cycle continues.

Tami says:

I think Sammy looked so nice with brown skin…Sometimes I think people with money lack brain power.

Kiki says:

Unfortunately the majority of the Dominicans that I’ve dealt with have issues with being black. I’m half black Cuban and never understood this. We had this one friend that I’ll call Julie who was Dominican. She was a hard working and responsible person, but she had this problem, she refuse to acknowledge her African heritage. She’d say that she’s a direct descendant of European Jews and one day my mom sat her down and told her what time it was. Needless to say, Julie was displeased that my mom would tell her that she was forgetting to honor her African heritage. Julie acted insulted as if my mom called her the ‘n’ word. Hello, my mom’s a black Cuban so there was nothing derogatory about her reminding Julie that she was black too. Dominicans seem to have creative ways of describing themselves, indio oscuro, indio claro, without calling themselves black. Cubans do it to some extent (Latinos do this in general to varying degrees), but we honor our African heritage more openly than Dominicans. I find this unfortunate because this takes away from the natural good looks and charm that you guys have.

I could’ve passed for something lighter than what I am because I’m yellow, but I’m proud of my African half. Why should I hide it like it’s a shameful secret? Us black Latinos need to stop with the denial, placating, self hatred and internalized colonization that’s still taking place. No matter how some Sosa defenders cut it, the man’s ashamed of being Dominicano. Most Dominicanos are of African heritage even if they look like A-Rod, un mulato.

Sammy esta pasao and needs a head check. When he’s done with that he needs to issue his people an apology because that’s hella offensive. Maybe he don’t need to say sorry and get on his knees, but offer a conciliatory statement that fosters goodwill. People eventually forgive and forget.