White Beauty
Check out this most recent skin lightening product coming out of India. There's an article on the SAJA Forum about it here. The product is a Pond's cream called White Beauty, with Ogilvie and Mather behind the marketing campaign...
You could Youtube the entire ad campaign -- it's like five or six spots that are soap-opera style and it really did have me wondering what happens next. Does the guy come back to the darker-skinned beauty he jilted for the light-skinned girl? The dark-skinned girl, by the way, just happens to be Priyanka Chopra -- former Miss World. If she could be dumped for someone lighter skinned, the rest of us clearly don't stand a chance. There is a similar ad for the East Asian market, here.
Now, this could (maybe) be a bit of a hot button topic for me, admittedly, but still. One, because I was the "darkie" in my family, and therefore repeatedly made aware of my lower status on the beauty scale, especially next to my gorgeous, lighter-skinned brother (whom I adore and hold no grudge against whatsoever -- if you're reading this, Manjit, hi! *waves and grins*). And the mother in my novel who deals precisely with this exact same issue is not modeled on anyone I know. *wide innocent eyes*
Sometimes I think that, because I've grown and evolved and most of the people I associate with have as well, the rest of the world has followed suit. But ads like the one above remind me constantly of just how base and dehumanizing this whole money-grab thing can be. It's hard to keep what's real and true and important up front and center when we're constantly bombarded with images and values that have nothing to do with what's TRUE.
What's true is that a lighter skin color does not buy love and happiness. Lighter skin color is the marketing platform this company, and many others like it, use to sell their products. Period. The same is true for the diet and exercise industry -- a thinner body, bigger boobs, a washboard stomach, wrinkle-free skin, [insert any other massive insecurity here], doesn't create more love and happiness in your life.
But that wouldn't make money, right? If they told you the only way you could really be happy is by looking inside and LIKING who you are, my guess is you probably wouldn't buy all those products. You can't sell anything if people don't feel like they need it. Whether it's an emotional need, or a physical need, people have to feel like they're missing something in their lives in order to shell out hard-earned dollars. Especially if those hard-earned dollars could go to, oh, I dunno--FOOD. Education, maybe. Sometimes, even RENT. After all, numerous studies and reports show that the number one, top consumers in the U.S. are middle-class to low-income women, usually of color.
I don't know...does it piss you off when someone does a jig on your insecurities and makes TONS of dollars off it? Especially when it seems everyone around agrees with the jig-dancer that if you just changed a whole bunch of things by buying a whole bunch of products the jig-dancer is selling, you'd finally, once and for all, be HAPPY? By golly, you'll have love in your life! You'll be irresistible! You'll snag the guy/girl!
Just buy this cream/pill/machine at $XX plus shipping and handling and all applicable taxes for your state.... :D
Click to viewYou could Youtube the entire ad campaign -- it's like five or six spots that are soap-opera style and it really did have me wondering what happens next. Does the guy come back to the darker-skinned beauty he jilted for the light-skinned girl? The dark-skinned girl, by the way, just happens to be Priyanka Chopra -- former Miss World. If she could be dumped for someone lighter skinned, the rest of us clearly don't stand a chance. There is a similar ad for the East Asian market, here.
Now, this could (maybe) be a bit of a hot button topic for me, admittedly, but still. One, because I was the "darkie" in my family, and therefore repeatedly made aware of my lower status on the beauty scale, especially next to my gorgeous, lighter-skinned brother (whom I adore and hold no grudge against whatsoever -- if you're reading this, Manjit, hi! *waves and grins*). And the mother in my novel who deals precisely with this exact same issue is not modeled on anyone I know. *wide innocent eyes*
Sometimes I think that, because I've grown and evolved and most of the people I associate with have as well, the rest of the world has followed suit. But ads like the one above remind me constantly of just how base and dehumanizing this whole money-grab thing can be. It's hard to keep what's real and true and important up front and center when we're constantly bombarded with images and values that have nothing to do with what's TRUE.
What's true is that a lighter skin color does not buy love and happiness. Lighter skin color is the marketing platform this company, and many others like it, use to sell their products. Period. The same is true for the diet and exercise industry -- a thinner body, bigger boobs, a washboard stomach, wrinkle-free skin, [insert any other massive insecurity here], doesn't create more love and happiness in your life.
But that wouldn't make money, right? If they told you the only way you could really be happy is by looking inside and LIKING who you are, my guess is you probably wouldn't buy all those products. You can't sell anything if people don't feel like they need it. Whether it's an emotional need, or a physical need, people have to feel like they're missing something in their lives in order to shell out hard-earned dollars. Especially if those hard-earned dollars could go to, oh, I dunno--FOOD. Education, maybe. Sometimes, even RENT. After all, numerous studies and reports show that the number one, top consumers in the U.S. are middle-class to low-income women, usually of color.
I don't know...does it piss you off when someone does a jig on your insecurities and makes TONS of dollars off it? Especially when it seems everyone around agrees with the jig-dancer that if you just changed a whole bunch of things by buying a whole bunch of products the jig-dancer is selling, you'd finally, once and for all, be HAPPY? By golly, you'll have love in your life! You'll be irresistible! You'll snag the guy/girl!
Just buy this cream/pill/machine at $XX plus shipping and handling and all applicable taxes for your state.... :D