Black is beautiful

THE EDITOR, Sir:

Black is beautiful, but traditionally in Jamaica, black children, black teenagers and black adults have had to endure the mental anguish and emotional burden of being insulted, criticised and called ugly by their peers and their family members.

Some mothers have said to their own children things like, ‘Yuh black and ugly’, and further, have treated their lighter-skinned children better than their darker-skinned children.

In the television industry, the lighter you are the more likely you will be chosen to be put in front of the camera to read the news, give the weather report, and present sports news.

Is it any wonder that bleaching has become so commonplace in Jamaica, and in particular, within a certain segment of society? Barry Street in downtown Kingston has been for many years a bleaching hub.

Major dancehall artistes like Vybz Kartel, Tommy Lee Sparta and Khago all had dark complexion, but for several years now their skin has become much lighter. As a result, their legions of fans and young, upcoming artistes continue to emulate them.

Since 1962, most of the winners of the Miss Jamaica World and Miss Jamaica Universe competitions have been of brown and, albeit to a less extent, fair complexion. Dark- complexioned Jamaican girls who entered the aforementioned competitions have been the least successful at reaching the top spot.

A brainwashing campaign, both subliminally and overtly, has transpired for many decades through the English language. The word ‘black’ is, at times, defined in the dictionary as “dirty” (and) “impure”, while the word ‘white’ is defined as “pure”. Also, black has been negatively connoted with certain well-known phrases, including ‘black market’, ‘Black Plague’, ‘black cat’, ‘black cloud’, ‘black sheep’, etc.

It’s time for mothers to tell their black children how beautiful they are; for the television to feature and put at the forefront more black broadcasters; for dancehall artistes to stop bleaching their skin, and instead, compose and deejay positive lyrics concerning black skin; and for negative phrases which include the word ‘black’ to be permanently eliminated from the English language.

Last, in all the aforementioned sectors of Jamaican life, a 180-degree turn is needed if real progress is to be made, and the status quo changed for the better.

PATRICK GALLIMORE