“...If you call a Mexican woman a “morenita,” you are admiring her...”
It was different in El Salvador when I was there. If you remarked to a girl that she was “tan chelita” (very light skinned) she would say thanks. A woman once told me that her sister was more “morena” but otherwise very attractive. When a Salvadoran gives an insult for stupidity it is often “Que Indio !!” (How Indian).
Sadly some Latina’s avoid swimming pools because they don’t want to get any tanner.
In Mexico, morenita is a compliment. Speaking of a light skinned woman, Mexicans would say tan guera, and a general compliment would be tan chula, or tan chulita. Mexicans don’t say que India, they say que naca, or que naco, sort of like trailer trash with indian blood. There is a hilarious character on one of Televisa’s comedy shows named Nacaranda, y ella es tan tacky! Quesosissimo. I have never heard the word chelita. Learn something new every day.