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Nshima & Curry

Melvin's  Blog

Nshima & Curry

TIME TO LIGHTEN UP ABOUT SKIN TONE

In the final rounds of "American Idol," young singer John
Stevens turned into a virtual punching bag, taking jabs from
the judges and other critics, some of whom apparently
believed that what Stevens was producing at age 16 -- a
collection of songs -- was not as impressive as what they
themselves had produced at the same age: a collection of
pimples.

Perhaps the lowest blow came on the night of Stevens'
elimination from the contest, when ABC late-night host Jimmy
Kimmel showed a clip of the redhead's farewell song and
said, "Goodbye, world's palest boy!"

What a strange world we live in. We have whites making fun
of other whites for being too white, and we also have blacks
snubbing other blacks for being too black. Who knows,
perhaps within our arteries and veins we have exclusive
clubs of red blood cells that travel around together,
saying, "We're not as red as they are!"

Is it any wonder that so many light-skinned people are
spending money trying to look darker, while dark-skinned
people are spending even more money trying to look lighter?
If you happen to be satisfied with your complexion, the
tanning salons and skin cream makers have a message for you:
Get your eyes checked! Imagine how much better your life
would be if your skin was just a little bit lighter or
darker or even spotted. If you use the right chemicals, you
might even be able to give your romantic partner a special
bedroom treat: playing a game of "connect the dots." But try
not to squeal, even if something begins to peel.

Yes, all this skin toning does pose health risks, even
cancer, but don't tell that to the American women spending
hours in the sun trying to get "the ultimate tan," hoping it
will eventually bring them "the ultimate man." And don't
tell that to the African and Asian women covering their
bodies with so much skin-lightening cream, they have to use
shovels to find their navels.

More than a billion dollars is spent annually on
skin-lightening creams -- and only half of it by Michael
Jackson. The rest goes to people who believe that lighter
skin will make them more attractive, not to mention more
visible at night.

Being dark-skinned myself, I know what it's like to have
your photo taken, then have trouble spotting anything but
your teeth. Now you know why I love wearing fluorescent
clothes.

In India, a matrimonial ad is like an application to be a
judge: you have to describe how fair you are. If a woman
is fair-skinned, she is automatically beautiful, no matter
how many chins she has. If she is dark-skinned, she has
little chance of winning the Miss. India contest, even if
her talent and personality are as exceptional as her plastic
surgeon.

Some women will do just about anything to look lighter: rub
dangerous bleaching agents on their skin, bathe in tubs of
coconut milk, eat five pounds of white chocolate every day,
stand under flocks of chattering birds.

Some of my relatives put so much powder on their faces,
family gatherings look like a reenactment of the movie
"Night of the Living Dead," except scarier.

Meanwhile, in America, people are exposing themselves to
powerful UV rays, hoping to look a little darker, hoping
their friends will say to them what mine are always saying
to me: "Nice tan!"

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