It’s not exactly a secret that in our society, there is a definite pecking order when it comes to skin color. In fact, it’s almost the farthest thing from a secret because our society goes out of its way to single out and ridicule people of darker skin, convincing them that they are less than beautiful through rampant propaganda and media exposure. This systematic brainwashing of the consumerist masses is, of course, all in the name of placating the capitalist Hydra that turns the cogs of our society. In a way, the iconic words of Wu-Tang Clan ring true. Cash does, indeed, rule everything around us, and the symbiotic relationship between capitalism and patriarchy creates institutions which command our everyday lives. Capitalism and patriarchy are so deeply intersected that they work together to reinforce the notion that those with light skin take automatic precedence over those with dark skin, and through the institutions of the media, the same puppet masters market and put a price tag on light skin as though it is something to aspire to.

This brings us to the ideology and nuances of shadeism, a concept not many are familiar with, nor are they comfortable with discussing it. Simply put, shadeism can be defined as a form of inter- and intra-racial microaggressions that divide and separate ethnic communities through false standards of beauty. Before we delve into the concept of shadeism, however, it’s important that we make one thing abundantly clear. Race is a social construct - it has no biological grounding or legitimate claim to validity beyond what we assign it. That being said, the establishment of race as a construct does not abolish its consequences. Racism is an equation involving power and prejudice, the former of which always falls into the hands of white people. Racism and shadeism work in tandem, both serving similar purposes. Shadeism, however, can be seen as a subset of racism; it creates false standards of beauty (primarily Western) and imposes them upon ethnic communities. This not only creates conflict between people of color and white people, but between light and dark-skinned individuals within an ethnic community. Shadeism creates a light vs. dark conflict within communities because dark-skinned people’s skin is seen as undesirable and ugly, while light-skinned people are often subject to resentment from their darker counterparts. This insidious disease of the society drives us further apart from reaching unity, and thrives off of creating insecurity.

Shadeism, as previously mentioned, is infectious and far-reaching. It affects several ethnic communities, including but not limited to Aboriginal, African, Caribbean, Chinese, Indian, Korean, and Latinx people. What ties the experience of all of these regions together is their shared history of European colonialism. For ages, all of these nations and continents had been imposed upon by imperialist powers that were dead set on enforcing their colonialist agenda. Remnants of this imperialism still exist in these parts of the world today. Aboriginal children are often kidnapped from their homes and assimilated into European cultures, and slowly but surely, find their native cultures being bred out of them in a new form of genocide. Bollywood, India’s largest film industry only features the lightest of the light skinned Indians, who endorse such products as Fair and Lovely, a skin lightening product that literally bleaches skin over several weeks. Black women have also been targeted by this oppressive structure of pigmentocracy, facing remarks that range from microaggressions to downright explicit racism. In addition, in the colonial period of Latin America, those born under mixed-race parentage and had lighter skin boasted far more power and privilege than indigenous peoples. This privilege still exists today, where characteristics such as light skin, light hair, and light eyes are often fetishized in not just the Latinx community, but all ethnic communities. Media and pop culture is not immune from the clutches of shadeism either. For example, in Big Hero 6, the popular animated movie that released in late 2014, one of the main characters, Honey Lemon was classified as a Latinx woman. Honey Lemon, however, was a compilation of all the characteristics most fetishized in the Latinx community. This especially impacts young Latinx girls who idolize their on-screen influences, and will feel alienated because they don’t fit the mold of the perfect woman of color. The K-pop community also is notorious for its use of blackface as a method of ridicule, and darker-skinned Korean citizens are referred to as “dirt pigs,” which is a testament to how shadeism has affected our society and how irreversible the damage is. These developments are a result of Western-imposed beauty standards; Western nations introduced pigmentocracies in the nations they colonized, and even had a lasting influences in the places they didn’t.

Shadeism is so internalized that opponents of its existence argue that it is irrelevant in modern day. They say that some people just prefer lighter skin colors, but what they fail to realize is that that belief is really a product of Western beauty standards coercing us into believing that lighter skin is the most desirable and attractive. They would be totally wrong in assuming that we have reached the pinnacle of societal progress, to the point where systems of oppression don't even exist anymore, and that shadeism is something natural, not a result of white supremacy. Now with this very prevalent problem still plaguing our society today, one may ask, well what can I do about this? Well, the very first step to solving a problem is raising awareness about it. To educate, in other words. And there is a plethora of ways to increase consciousness around this issue. For starters, many documentaries exist on the subject of shadeism or colorism, such as the titular "Shadeism", the renowned "Dark Girls," or the somewhat more recent "Light Girls." All three filmmakers of these projects expose how prevalent these problems still are today. Pigmentocracy is not a thing of the past, no matter how much we want to believe it is. And to exacerbate the problem, shadeism is not only affecting the mindset of adults in society, but of children as well. Whether historic (e.g. brown paper bag test - where black people would only be allowed in certain establishments if their skin color was lighter than that of a brown paper bag) or current (e.g. Fair and Lovely skin cream), this toxic standard of beauty has settled itself so comfortably into society that we don't even recognize it for what it is. So what can we do to combat these racist ideas? Well, to begin, calling out problematic behavior in our society such as the practice of blackface in K-pop, or boycotting skin creams such as Fair and Lovely not only makes us aware of the problem, but helps us actively fight against it. One of the biggest problems with shadeism is that it deceives people into the false notion that their skin tone is inferior, and it creates a sense of alienation within one's own community. The road ahead is not an easy one, but being aware of the problems you're surrounded by is the first step in eradicating them. We've made huge strides in the way of social progress today, but we've still got a ways to go. Knowing the source of our problems, however, brings us closer to finding a solution. By becoming hyper-aware of our situation and calling out problematic behavior, we contribute to the cure. It's important to keep in mind the origin of shadeism and its ties to white supremacy in our histories and the present. It's also essential that we keep in mind how these white supremacist ideals remain in place today - modern advances, but primitive thinking. We must refuse to succumb to the ideas we are force-fed by the privileged, and visualize the goal we hope to achieve: a society where people are not shamed for their skin color and one in which our standards of beauty are inclusive and diversifying.