Posted on 01/01/2013 4:59:34 PM PST by MinorityRepublican
Nomasonto Mnisi says her skin colour is "a self-esteem issue"
South Africa is marketed to the world as Mandela's rainbow nation, where everyone is proud of their race and heritage. But for some black South Africans there is such a thing as being too black.
A recent study by the University of Cape Town suggests that one woman in three in South Africa bleaches her skin. The reasons for this are as varied as the cultures in this country but most people say they use skin-lighteners because they want "white skin".
Local musician Nomasonto "Mshoza" Mnisi, now several shades lighter, says her new skin makes her feel more beautiful and confident.
She has been widely criticised in the local media and social networking sites for her appearance but the 30-year-old says skin-bleaching is a personal choice, no different from breast implants or a having nose job.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
oh, yeah; Gary Oldman in The Fifth Element.
Not that I wish to denigrate her, or anything.
In Thailand, and I pretty sure everywhere else in SE Asia, very dark skin is not only considered unattractive but “scary”.
I have to constantly remind the kids here, especially my 11 yo niece, not to fear people based on skin tone, and more importantly, not to trust them based on that, or overall pleasant appearance, either.
About the Vietnamese farm workers covered head to toe - that makes sense to me, same as in desert areas. A light covering is not only cooler, but necessary protection against sun burn and cancer - that’s why we wear hats in the strong sun!
Not buying it. I do think that overall among humans, it is desired that females be lighter than males.
Probably George Bush’s fault.
I can tan alright, but may have already had skin cancer, so I don’t go out of my way to expose myself to sunburn.
These can’t ALL be shopped!
“cover up or you’ll turn black and never find a husband!”....Same in the PI. I had a girlfriend who was a HELL of a swimmer and could dive without SCUBA. We went to Blue Beach and I decided to go fishing and dive for lobsters. She showed up in a Burkha, for all intents and purposes. I said where is your bikini? She said she’d never get married if she got too dark.
Buy it or not. It’s rue and has been noted by explorers and settlers all through the colonial period. It is overt in places I have been, including Turkey and Greece and among the Cherokee in North Carolina.
Proper tanning is also a function of the environment. For most of my life I have lived in tropics and subtropics so my skin early on got a bronzed patina which seems now to be permanent. I can almost always spot midwesterners or Canadians who visit here by their skin shade. They never quite attain the color of the permanent tan of locals. European tourists are even easier to spot by their sort of apple red skin. Oh and those horrible bikinis the men wear on the beach. That should be illegal.
It just looked... odd....
My Chinese relations go to very great lengths to use sunblock and coverings to keep their very beautiful (and very light) skin from tanning.
I, white as I am, have sun damage and a blotchy face from never bothering.
The reason is that if you had a tanned skin and non-calloused fingers, that meant that you didn't work with your hands, ergo, you were nobility
Just like the kimono in Japan or the toga in ancient Rome -- you couldn't work in these clothes, so it meant that you were the rich class who got others to work for you
Natural fibres only -- the artificial ones aren't good
The effect is the same.
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