Stigma of dark complexion fading<\/p>\n
By Mehru Jaffer<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): In the much acclaimed English film Bhaji on the
\nBeach, an elderly character of Asian origin blames the breakup of
\nher son's marriage to the very dark complexion of her
\ndaughter-in-law. She moans something like, "I knew that girl was
\nno good when I saw how dark she was!" It does not even occur to
\nthe elderly lady to ponder that maybe her son had hurt his wife
\nso much that she had little choice but to leave him or that the
\ncolor of his skin was not much lighter than his wife's!<\/p>\n
A desire for white skin, especially in women, has been the
\nweakness of most Asian societies since the dawn of civilization.
\nIn Japan a white complexion is considered more feminine, in
\nIndonesia it is associated with the exclusive class of
\naristocrats. It has not helped that most parts of Asia were once
\nunder the colonial rule of fair skinned Europeans who invariably
\nmade the dark skinned natives feel like dirt.<\/p>\n
Royalty succeeded in guarding its complexion from ruin only
\nbecause it could stay indoors and by resting and eating well and
\nfor centuries dark skin was associated with boorish members of
\nthe working class who are looked down on as being crude and
\nrepulsive.<\/p>\n
In legends throughout the region, night is dark and to be
\nfeared, a time when unseen creatures take over the world while
\nhuman beings rest their eyes in fear and dread. The evil forces
\nare always dark and to be defeated by brave warriors with
\ncomplexions as light as day. In Indonesia the color white enjoys
\nan image of being clean, chaste, neutral and light.<\/p>\n
Despite the catchy slogan, Black is Beautiful, coined in the
\n1970s to boost the morale of black American women and the desire
\nof thousands of European women to tan themselves chocolate brown,
\ncosmetic shelves at drug stores and super markets all over Asia
\nare lined with various brands of creams and lotions that promise
\nto lighten the skin of dark women.<\/p>\n
Both royalty and the colonialists have long departed from the
\nregion and some of the unfair legends are also fading, but the
\nstigma of being dark skinned continues to live within Asian
\nsocieties. Or does it?<\/p>\n
According to a recent study by Professor Miho Saito, a
\npsychologist at Waseda University, Japanese women in Indonesia do
\nnot desire milk white complexions like Europeans any more. What
\nthey seek is a healthy looking skin with a natural glow. Based on
\nher study women here have used positive words like happy, soft
\nand healthy for a wheatish complexion.<\/p>\n
Spotted at the launch of an ultra violet natural lightening
\ncream by Oil of Olay that targets women between the ages of 15
\nyears and 29 years, Ecky, 22, swears that she is content with her
\ncoffee colored complexion. But she has been using the lightening
\nlotion to clear blemishes and above all to protect her skin from
\nthe sun and pollution. She does not desire a white complexion for
\nherself.<\/p>\n
The other change in the attitude of the modern Asian woman is
\nthat she wants to look and feel good for herself for a change and
\nunlike her more insecure elders she dresses up not just to please
\nmen or to hook a husband. Educated working women are aware that
\nlong hours under the harsh sun and pollution can tan and damage
\nthe skin.<\/p>\n
"What lightening lotions do is to reverse the process of
\ntanning. It is that damage control that makes the face look
\nyounger, cleaner and not necessarily whiter," explained Dr. Lily
\nSoepardiman, dermatologist, School of Medicine of University of
\nIndonesia and consultant to Procter and Gamble, the cosmetic
\ncompany that markets more than 300 products to millions of
\nconsumers in over 140 countries.<\/p>\n
What Dr. Lily wants women to beware of is the mercury content
\nin skin lightening creams. The titanium dioxide based creams are
\ngood for the skin as they reflect sunlight, helping to prevent
\nultra violet rays from penetrating into the skin.<\/p>\n
It was never true that medium to dark skinned people are
\nimmune to the strains of the sun. In fact some darker skins are
\nfound to be even more sensitive than their lighter counterparts.
\nThat dark skin can get burned and bullied as easily by the rays
\nof the sun is fast becoming common knowledge. The break through
\nconcept is not to lighten the skin but to protect it from getting
\nunnecessarily tanned.<\/p>\n
As for the rich and the mighty who live in palaces, they are
\njust an illusion. They seem to look better than the majority of
\npeople working for a living only because they are able to protect
\nthemselves from the burning sun and not because they were born
\nsuperior.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/stigma-of-dark-complexion-fading-1447893297",
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