She’s Too Black!

Two years ago, a friend from home hugged me out of nowhere. I jumped but smiled when I realized who she was. “I hardly recognized you,” she said, noting that my skin looked darker. I told her I just got back from a beach vacation. She responded that she “avoids the sun in the summer” because she doesn’t want to get “any blacker.” She joked about how ugly she looks in the summer when she gets darker and a few other stereotypical dark-skin jokes. As a dark skin Black American man, I’ve heard them all. I could tell she was attempting to cushion her genuine feelings with humor about her complexion, and unfortunately, this is not the first time I’ve seen this. While I offered a smile in response, it was more out of discomfort than amusement because it represented the harsh truth that there is a relentless grasp on black women regarding colorism. So much so that my friend didn’t realize she was beautiful no matter the season. <img alt="" src="https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:700/1*pb7jw83K3jVqjDNLDW-7UA.jpeg" style="height:873px; width:700px" /> Photo of fashion model <a href="https://doriaadouke.com/how-to-take-care-of-dark-skin-in-summer/" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">Doria Adouke</a>, “How To Take Care of Dark Skin” Growing up, I was surrounded by Pan-Africanism and teachings of black empowerment by my activist parents. We traveled and lived throughout Brooklyn and Harlem, places with a rich tapestry of black history. My family embraced African and Black American culture and are of many shades of dark and brown complexion. My family didn’t grow up seeing a separation of complexions, and I was the proudest black dude in the city (my words, and I’m standing by them). Our skin, for us, was like a superpower and the essence of civilization’s roots. We understood that our people had suffered the last four centuries at the bottom, but our skin represented resilience. Unfortunately, as I got older, I found out this ain’t how many of us think. <a href="https://momentum.medium.com/shes-too-black-1fe85ad2dca1">Visit Now</a>