Scientists throughout history predominately in the 19th and 20th century distorted results to prove racial, and sexual inferiority based on brain size. Many are familiar with the picture also in this weeks reading.
I learned in my African American studies class about free slaves that wrote slave narratives such as Olaudah Equiano. This narrative and narratives like this had to be declared by white superior intellects to prove authenticity. I found this very interesting that books had to be declared by a white person to be worth reading, simply because people were suspicious and did not believe that an African could not be literate, or was lying about their past.
In one of our readings, Making Societies by Roy describes society as hierarchical. He writes about a “separate but equal races” society that has yet to exist.
When the Roy reading got into the topic of gradual shading of skin tones, that was something really sparked my interest. As Roy describes going from light to dark, this rigid
boundary set by society agreeing that the “two medium-dark people in the middle can be
considered as very different from each other if they are defined as “black” and
white”. The one defined “black” will be considered more similar to people who
are very dark thin the person with nearly identical skin color…” and the
opposite is true. Skin color is treated as a gradient with a rigid line. When a person has two parents from different races, the child is automatically assumed to be the lower status race.
In this Ponds commercial, I watched in my women's studies class a women who has darker skin and seen as lower class. Of course, only until after she buys her real "white beauty" lightening skin product can she be seen as beautiful and get the man back she loves.
Racist Ponds commercial
This commercial was created by the advertising company, Uniliver.
Many of you have seen the following Dove real Beauty commercial.
Dove Real Beauty Commercial
However after watching both those clips you will be shocked to know that they are owned by the same advertising company. Discovering that a company can be so hypocritical to create a commercial about real beauty, and then create one such as the ponds commercial encouraging people of darker skin, to lighten it. And then only then will you be beautiful. I think the part that upset me the most was that I had no idea that this type of racism was occurring.
Many of you have seen the following Dove real Beauty commercial.
Dove Real Beauty Commercial
However after watching both those clips you will be shocked to know that they are owned by the same advertising company. Discovering that a company can be so hypocritical to create a commercial about real beauty, and then create one such as the ponds commercial encouraging people of darker skin, to lighten it. And then only then will you be beautiful. I think the part that upset me the most was that I had no idea that this type of racism was occurring.
I am surprised to hear that those commercials are from the same advertising company. LIke Jessica mentioned, how can the two adds be so different? I have seen Dove commercials before and thought they were a good way to help people realize they are beautiful no matter what, but after watching the Ponds commercial I will probably not look at Dove commercials in the same way. It is hard to take them seriously when they are speaking to the audience in a completely different way in another commercial.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing this made me think about was how racism is discussed in our society. We pretend it doesn't exist anymore and that the racial issues are starting to decrease, but seeing the differences in these commercials make me wonder how prevalent this issue is. We try to cover these issues up, but we all know they exist. It is something that certain racial groups may feel more than others, but there is the constant issue of trying to become a higher class, not only with money but with skin color and characteristics as well.
Race, in current society as well as in the past, is more determined by one's blood than by one's phenotype. Phenotype is used to inform judgment decisions on someone's race and people are judged based upon their appearance, but when concerning the actual grouping based on race, it is one's heritage that matters. This explains why hypodescent sorts octoroons into the minority class instead of grouping them based on phenotype. There exist other tools of classification as well. In Mark Twain's Puddin'head Wilson, a slave-women of 1/16 negro blood is identified as a slave not by her appearance but by the way she speaks. Growing up in a slave home she never developed the language of the whites.
ReplyDeleteAlso I really don't understand how the Pond's commercials are racist. Undeniably they promote a white beauty standard, however I do not think that makes them racist. Is a tanning commercial racist against the fair skinned Irish because they do not tan easily? Is a shampoo commercial that advertises smooth hair racist against African-Americans because genetically their inclined to have less smooth hair? These beauty standards negatively affect society because it does make women (and men) feel inferior but I do not think this makes them racist. These "desirable" traits are the byproducts of racism - not racism itself
Racism permeating our society is clearly demonstrated in the Pond’s commercial that promotes lighter as being more beautiful. I agree that in itself this is not racism, but is a product of the social construction and hierarchy of race our society has created. This ad automatically slights those with darker skin and encourages them to look different because somehow the way they are (darker skin or not) is not good enough. Our society as a whole agrees that racism should not be tolerated, and yet it pervades throughout our culture. One Intel advertisement shows acute racism displayed not only in the stature of the men, but also in the activities they engage in. It succumbs to the racism notions that someone’s race dictates their profession and their talents. (i.e. this advertisement upholds the idea that Blacks are better athletes than whites) However, these behaviors cannot be applicable to every single member of that race. To assume that, even if it is a desirable/positive characteristic is to assert one’s control over them and create a dominant hierarchical system. He/she may experience hardships in life if they do not live up to the expectations, no matter how positive they are thought to be.
ReplyDeleteOne quote from the French philosopher stuck out to me. He writes, “The negro race is a species of men as different from ours as the breed of spaniels is from that of greyhounds.. They are not capable of any great application or association of ideas” (Roy 88). I am astonished by how much racism infiltrated philosophy and even science went so far as to conduct experimenting trying to prove whites had the largest skull size. It is interesting to think that science, which our society undoubtedly views as infallible, led so many to believe that certain races are inferior. Maybe this faith in science was already skewed by the constructions of race that are engrained into us from the time we are young.
I too found the idea of the "white beauty" commercial to be racist. In society, it is no secret that the ideal is white (among other things such as male, middle-class, straight, Christian, etc.) This idea serves to "other" people who don't fit the hegemonic mold. In this case, the assumption is that if you are fine-skinned, you will be more likable. The body becomes a marker of status and worth; it has been invested with meaning and ascribed value according to what it signals in regard to race, class, gender, ability/disability, beauty, etc. Race especially designates one's worth relative to the norm. This product offers a way for the norm to be bought and sold as a desirable commodity, thus seemingly increasing the worth of the consumer.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, this reinforces the idea that beauty can be consumed.
This would be my major critic of the Dove Beauty campaign to begin with, regardless of the fact that Unilever is being two-faced. Dove markets the idea of "real beauty" and embracing qualities that are less then ideal (but even then there is very little variation in the models marketing their products), but yet, you cannot lose sight of the fact that Dove's first and foremost goal is to sell a product, to essentially sell beauty. This tricks consumers into thinking that they need to obtain products to make them beautiful.
Sarah, I absolutely agree that we put on an act like racism does not exist anymore. This made me think of people who say things like, "I'm not a racist, I don't see race." This sort of thinking actually perpetrates racist attitudes and leads people to underestimate the frequency of racism in society. Additionally, those who have "color-blind" attitudes may think that race has no influence on educational, occupational, or economic opportunities and may contribute disparities to lack of work ethic, or other similar qualities.
I recently watched a documentary on the Oprah Winfrey Network titled Dark Girls. It showcase black women in particular and their experience with colorism. This documentary exemplifies how black people especially view themselves in the society they live in and how they feel that solely based on their skin color society judges them. In the documentary these women spoke of many instances where they were mistreated and judge throughout their lives because they were black. These stereotypes and racist treatment cause a deep emotional harm because people slowly start to hate who they are and where they come from. And I believe that this is the root of several self esteem issue that people of a dark skin tone face.
ReplyDeleteI think that everyone has a limit of how much hate and judgement on their character that they can take before they start to think maybe something is wrong with the way I look. Eventually they will try to do something about it like skin bleaching just like in the video because apparently lighter skin beautiful skin. This is ridiculous that this type of behavior and stereotype still exist today. Personally I believe that racist, stereotyping and produce behaviors will never end. There is a need in our society to categorize people and know exactly "who is what and who gets what.
It is interesting that you posted the Dove Real Beauty Sketches advertisement, I was just looking at some blogs in response to that video and after reading them, I completely believe that the Ponds commercial was made by the same people. If you would glance over this blog:
ReplyDeletehttp://jazzylittledrops.tumblr.com/post/48118645174/why-doves-real-beauty-sketches-video-makes-me
the author highlights why Dove's ad was good and mentions some things about why it makes her uncomfortable. Some of the reasons mentioned were that all four of the main participants were Caucasian, three with blonde hair and blue eyes, all were thin, and all were young. In addition to all of the main participants being from the same racial pool, most of the non-featured participants were young, thin, white women. At least three black women (two of three who had lighter skin) and one Asian woman were drawn, yet you do not get a good look at their finished sketches. The author of this blog notes that this advertisement, "seems to be enforcing our very narrow cultural perception of 'beauty': young, light-skinned, thin. No real diversity celebrated in race, age, or body shape". And although Dove was trying to make an uplifting commercial for women, it essentially spouted the same nonsense as its Ponds commercial.
Also I'd like to throw in my comments about the statement, "When a person has two parents from different races, the child is automatically assumed to be the lower status race". I am not sure where I stand with this statement. The 'lower status race' seems to be implied as the race with a darker skin tone, or in other words the race that is not white. In my experiences, I have found this to be held relatively true, but not exactly; when my race is inquired about (often), I have taken to letting the questioner guess what I am. What I have found is that I always hear black and white, but rarely Chinese or any of my other racial identities. I guess what I am trying to say is that when you are composed of more than two races, which is the lower status race? Who decides which race is more superior to the next?
After watching both of these commercials many times it is honestly astonishing to me that this type of hidden racism and types of beauty are still being sold to the public. What I mean by this is that the fact that advertising company's are still allowed and find it effect to tap into the emotion of people (especially women dealing with love) and associate success and hapiness to the lightness of skin tone. This took me especially by surprise when it was an indian commercial. All of the indian people I know are extremely proud of their skin color, women and men alike. Even with the stereotypes and hierarchal methods explained by the readings, the indian people I know have always been extremely proud. This type of suttle racism is becoming even more suttle by companies targeting certain demographics, they must of had a reason to believe that this would work better in the certain area they decided to release the commercial.
ReplyDeleteMy big question is what was the effect of the commercial? did it in fact sell more of the advertised product or did it disuade people from it. I think more studies of this should be taken because it can show if the public is still buying into the old hierarchal views or if people are becoming more leaning towards the genetic findings that everyone is extremely similar.
I personally believe racism has come down a lot and that (especially the up coming, educated individuals) are starting to see the world, and the view of a person as similar to them. This is going to allow the world to have a lot less conflicts without letting people lose a sense of their identity from their culture and race.