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"('Cause) I was told I would reach further
If the colour of mi skin was lighter
And I was made to feel inferior
Cah society seh brown girls prettier
Mi love the way mi look
Mi love mi pretty black skin
Respect due to mi strong melanin
Proud of mi colour, love the skin that I'm in
Bun racism, demolish colourism
But the things weh mi a go seh
Yuh might not even have mi back
I get hate from my own race
Yes, that's a fact
'Cause the same black people dem seh I'm too black
And if yuh bleach out yuh skin dem same one come a chat"
~Spice - Black Hypocrisy~
Ton Spice haar nieuwe foto had gepost op de GRAM was de wereld in shock.Wat iedereen bezig hield was de vraag of Spice haar huid had gebleekt. Gelukkig bleek dit niet het geval te zijn maar wilde Spice met deze stunt een topic aankaarten at diep geworteld zit in de Zwarte gemeenschap namelijk: colourism. HIeronder volgt een stuk uit mijn thesis die het topic ook aankaart. Mocht er behoeft aan zijn vertaal ik het naar het Nederland. Feel free to ask questions.
There is also a form of discrimination within the Black community in the Netherlands, we know this phenomenon as colourism. According to my informants one of the biggest challenges within the Black community in the Netherlands is the notion of colourism. According to Ras Tyehimba (in Gabriel 2007) colourism, is the “preference for lighterskinned people in all areas, including the choices of spousal partners, symbols of beauty, friends etc. This preference for lighter skinned people began in slavery whereas is explained above that Whites and Blacks became two distinct ethnic groups. C.M. told me further about this issue “In Afro-Surinamese culture they are talking you have to clean your colour and go with somebody lighter then yourself, why? In love it is not about whether it is light or Black but why you have to clean your colour?86”. With this C.M meant, and this was shared with a lot of Afro-Surinamese informants, that from her family members she was encouraged to marry a White man of a lighter skinned man so their offspring could have a lighter complexion. It can also be noted that the informants say it is mostly the older generation that think that way. According to Howard Bodenhorn (in Gabriel 2007) the privileged treatment of mulatto slaves in plantations accounts for the socioeconomic disparity between the two subgroups. He further explains that, since “light-complexed [sic] slaves were more likely to receive skill training, they had access to relatively well paid jobs when slavery was abolished. It is believed, by some members of the Black community in the Netherlands especially the older generation, that people of African descent with a lighter complexion have better changes in the Dutch society than people of African descent with a darker skin complexion, because, as was said above, the lighter skinned African had some privileges above more darker skinned Africans during the colonial time. For Blacktivists and Black conscious people in the Netherlands this view, that they have to lighten up their skin colour, is not shared, as you could read above these are people who are proud of their heritage. Following G.T. his explanation of colourism is: “A legacy is one of those slave mentalities that we have inherited. The closer your skin-colour is to White, the better qualities you have is the whole idea behind this. Light skinned enslaved Africans mostly worked in the house this meant that they had to do less heavier work. The more you resemble whites the better. It’s an issue that we as community have to break down87”. Colourism is a mindset where Black people think that White people are better than people of their own colour. According to G.H., an AfroSurinamese Blacktivist from Amsterdam: “Everybody has their place in the community. Light skinned people can help us with their light skinned privilege to help the darker skinned people of African descent to get black justice, because at the end of the day we are all Black and we should lend each other a hand88”. With the pan-African thought of unification of all Black people, the Black community in the Netherlands should the able to include its members of all shades of Black in the community and there should be unification between all.
1. https://www.google.nl/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwis2_KtxLDeAhUJqaQKHaz6DGIQjRx6BAgBEAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Furbanislandz.com%2F2018%2F10%2F22%2Fdancehall-reacts-to-spice-new-image-old-spice-vs-new-spice%2F&psig=AOvVaw2xpGbqfTIHD6mmONnxewhC&ust=1541070278520931
