Women who advocate for equity, diversity and inclusion. That is what Women’s History Month is about in 2024. Women are still having the same centuries old fight. It doesn’t make sense for it to be this way in such progressive times. But are we really living in progressive times?
“You cannot take your freedoms for granted. Just like generations who have come before you, you have to do your part to preserve and protect those freedoms.”
Michelle Obama
Let’s celebrate the women who are and have made a positive impact in the communities. Both local and afar. It takes courage and determination to answer the call to action. Forming comities, rallying together and just speaking on injustices is a great start.
We have women out there who have paved the way for advances we, as a country enjoy. Science, civil rights, film/theater, politics, sports, education, the arts and a plethora of disciplines is where women from all walks of life, have made their mark. Let us celebrate Ava DuVernay, Sally Ride, Serena Williams, Michelle Obama, Susan B. Anthony and a host of others.
Without their activism, and strength to pave the way, we may not have been able to accomplish some of the things we have today. Staying the course and speaking out against inequities against women must continue. We deserve to be included and treated fairly, so let’s not forget the work of those before us and the women who walk with us today on this journey.
“There will be resistance to your ambition, there will be people who say to you, ‘You are out of your lane.’ They are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. “
Black people come in a myriad of different skin tones. Due to this, some are discriminated against because they are either too light or too dark to be Black. This discrimination happens within our own community, as well as, by people outside of the Black race. That’s the sad part about it.
Light Skin
Light Skinned Complexion Photo by Nicole Berro on Pexels
If you are Black and are of a lighter complexion, people think that you are conceited. Some people say that you think you are, “all-that” and that you think you are better than other Black people who have a darker skin tone. While some light skinned people do act that way and fit the description, it is not because of the color of their skin. I attribute those characteristics to the individual person and not their complexion. Just note, that there are darker skinned Black people who possess the same traits. They think they are better than other Black people and there are some who are conceited too.
A perception exists that lighter skinned people are smarter, have more privileges and are more successful than darker skinned people. Being of a lighter complexion leads some people to say that you are not, “black enough”. Just based on your skin tone. Also, there is this kind of acceptance that some people seek just to prove their, “blackness”. This backward thinking is a part of what’s wrong with the world today. It goes back so many years and you would think in the year 2022, we would have progressed.
A person’s success in life depends on the efforts of that individual and not some unfounded belief that it is because they are light skinned. The world is so focused on outward appearance. Nowadays, people don’t take the time to see what others are truly made of and who they are beyond their skin tone.
We can’t help how we were made, and we were made the way we are for a reason. It is no excuse to call people names and insult them because they are not the same complexion as you. Light skinned people have been called derogatory names like red bone, high yellow, light skin, and pale face, just to name a few.
Being a Black person and having a dark skin tone comes with some negative preconceptions too. People think that if you are dark skinned that you are unintelligent, unsuccessful and not attractive. Again, this is so superficial and another stereotype that needs to be broken. Some people with a dark skinned complexion feel the need to compete with light skinned people. Meaning, that some women go to the extreme of bleaching their skin. I attribute this to the pressures of society to fit some unrealistic mold.
Darker skinned people are just as smart, beautiful, and successful as people of lighter skin tones. It can be hard for some to truly believe this when everyday someone tries to make them feel otherwise. We have to erase the color lines and lift each other up. It is so unfair to judge someone by their complexion before getting to know them. People of darker skin tones get labeled as, “too ethnic” and are passed up for certain career opportunities.
Some negative names that dark-skinned women have been called are jigaboo, darkie, black and burnt. Imagine what this does to a person’s psyche. There are many more derogatory names that people of both light and dark skin tones are called but this is just the abbreviated version. I truly believe that you should not navigate your life based on what other’s think of you. Pave your own way and don’t worry about people’s opinion.
Takeaway
Your complexion should not influence how far you go in life. My advice is to believe in yourself and go for what you want in life. It’s okay if you get passed up for an opportunity. That means it wasn’t for you and there is something else out there. Keep going! Do not be discouraged! It’s hard enough out here being judged by the masses. Why are we being judged by our own too? Let’s embrace each other and help each other out.
Diversity means so many different things to different people. It could relate to gender, race, music, food, people or any number of things. When I think of diversity it brings to mind my childhood. I grew up in a very culturally diverse neighborhood. Living in close proximity, going to school and having friends of different cultures and races has afforded me a greater appreciation for people and life in general.
Imagine living in a place where there are people who are from Africa, Puerto Rico, Greece, Haiti, India, Poland, and a host of other places; you learn a lot. It taught me that even though someone is not the same as me, we can still be friends and live in the same neighborhood. Just because someone does not look like me, dress like me and they don’t have the same beliefs does not make them less than. Despite our cultural differences, we still have some things in common. If we just took the time to get to know people from other cultures we begin to see a lot of things that we may not have known.
We open many doors when we see things from another person’s point of view. Most of us can say that we are a product of our environment. We learn what we see and hear in our everyday surroundings. If you dare to go outside of that, people think that you have sold out and are not down.
In my opinion, diversity means acceptance and understanding. When we accept that everyone is different we have a better understanding of how the world works. Today I focused on diversity as it relates to people. I will explore other types of diversity in a later post. I challenge you to learn something new about a different ethnic group or person.
