ALISSA of STYLISH CURVES shares "My Black Is Beautiful And Not Unconventional"

"Ever since I was a teenager I’ve always been told you’re pretty to be dark skinned. At the time, I couldn’t place my finger on why I never thought that was a compliment. As I got older, I realized that being told I was pretty to be dark skinned meant that my beauty was unconventional. To me, it implied that dark skinned women weren’t seen as attractive. In the 34 years I’ve been on this earth I’ve experienced discrimination not just because I am black but because of my shade of black. What’s more surprising is some of that discrimination came from other black women and women. Colorism in the black community is such a controversial topic. Director and actor Bill Duke gave a riveting and true glimpse into what it truly was like being a dark girl with his documentary “For Dark Girls.” 

People like to think that colorism no longer exists in today’s society or that its not an issue. Being a deep dark skinned woman, I am telling you first hand that it very much still exists. For me, high school is where I realized that my shade of black was seen negatively. In addition to receiving so called compliments that I was pretty to be dark skinned, I also heard comments like, you would look even better if you were a little lighter. Now, as an impressionable teenager, I was truly affected by that remark. It’s what led me to discover bleaching creams. At one point, it was easier to find bleaching creams than it was to find my shade in makeup.

I remember the first time I bought a bleaching cream from the local beauty supply store in hopes to make my skin lighter. Back in the early 90’s bleaching creams were heavily marketed to the black community. I came home with the bleaching cream and put it on my face, hoping that in about two weeks, my skin would be the right shade of brown. Well, to my surprise, my mom found the bleaching cream, looked at it, and said, why are you using this. She then laughed and said, you don’t need this and its certainly not going to make you lighter. You’re beautiful the way you are. From that day on, I never used a bleaching cream again. Women all over the world use bleaching creams for lighter skin. British model and personality Irene Major has been known and blasted for bleaching her skin. 

Even in 2016, beauty brands and magazines don’t include enough black women and definitely not enough dark skinned women in their campaigns. Ten years ago, it used to be immensely hard to find foundation in my shade. There were very few brands that catered to deeper skin tones. Thank God, today more brands are starting to offer deeper shades but oddly enough, the darker shades are harder to find. I’ve seen beauty brands only offer tan as their deepest shades. I find it ridiculous because I believe every beauty brand should offer shades from fair to deep dark because it would be a true representation of the different skin tones in the world. Black women are not the only race of people with deep skin tones. You have Indian women and dominicans who skin tones can range from fair to deep dark. So, beauty brands should cater to that. Personally, I am thankful for beauty brands like Cover Girl, Maybelline, Lancome, Makeup Forever, MAC, and Black Up Cosmetics for offering makeup in a wide range of shades.

What I find nonsensical is that when a beauty brand uses a black woman or dark skinned woman, they can be heavily criticized for using too dark of a model or for the model’s features being too big. Just look at all the controversy that erupted on MAC’s IG page when they featured model Aamito Stacie Lagum’s lips with a dark purple lipstick on her full voluptuous lips. Some comments called her a monkey, ugly, and some even used the N-word. We are living in a world where black women are being blasted for their natural features and other races are being praised for getting surgeries and injections to obtain our natural features. Last year people were...." 

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