Author: Zainab Pate

Stop Asking Black Girls About Their Hair.

March 20th, 2021

At my predominately white school, I have been asked many questions regarding my hair by non-Black people. Whenever I would get my hair straightened, I would face the same question: “Is that a wig?” Not only is that question extremely disrespectful, it is also just very unnecessary. Why does my hair concern you? Something I have realized is that anytime someone asks a question like this, it is not coming from a place of concern and care, it is condescending, as if they want you to admit something. Even if I was wearing a wig, what’s wrong with that? Wigs are only seen as cute and quirky when white girls wear them but as soon as a Black girl wants to wear one we are seen as “ghetto” and “ratchet”.

Ok so when a black girl where's a wig it's ghetto and ratchet, but when Kylie wears it it's fun and pretty? Foh
— f. (@fayvourite_) April 13, 2015

Many of my teachers have also made very inappropriate comments about my hair from “It’s almost like it grew overnight” to “Is that a weave?” Ignorance from kids is one thing but ignorance from grown adults is unacceptable– educators need to be educated about micro-aggressions and their language when talking about Black hair.

I decided to interview my good friend Micayla Green about her experience with non-Black people making comments about her hair. She stated that “It feels like I’m in a museum, constantly being watched by others.” This quote emphasizes the sad truth for many Black girls, as our hair has to look perfect at all times to look “presentable”. She describes another experience when someone said that “It looks like someone is having a bad hair day” when her hair was just in a bun. People with straight hair can wear cute messy buns but as soon as a Black girl doesn’t feel like spending a long time getting ready, her hair doesn’t look “good.”

People used to invite themselves to invade my personal space and touch my hair without permission my whole life. That is a microaggression. If you have done this, never do this again. Normalize natural black hair. I do not have to change it to be viewed as presentable and I won’t
— Tiana Cole (@tianacole_) June 5, 2020

I then asked my older sister, Maryam Pate about micro-aggressions she has faced about her hair and she described an experience when a white friend told her, “You should straighten your hair more!” Although this may seem like a harmless “compliment” the girl was basically implying that her hair looks better when it fits society’s beauty standards–straight and thin hair.

I have never fully understood white people’s obsession with our hair. Whether it is a passive aggressive comment or touching our hair and calling it “poofy” they ALWAYS have something to say. Our hair isn’t “exotic” or “fake,” please just stop because me and many other Black girls are sick and tired of the never-ending scrutiny.

Black women’s hair has been looked down upon since the 18th century when British colonials said that Black women’s hair was closer to sheep wool than human hair. Today, Black girls are still being sent home from school because their hair isn’t presentable. Enough is enough.

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Art credits: Khia, @khiascanvas on Instagram

More info about things you shouldn’t ask Black girls :
https://naturallclub.com/blogs/the-naturall-club-blog/10-things-you-should-never-ask-a-black-woman-about-her-hair
Colorism In The Cosmetics Industry

December 14th, 2020

You know that feeling of excitement when you’re going to McDonald’s for ice cream and as you’re pulling up the worker says that the machine doesn’t work? Well, that feeling of disappointment is what I always feel walking into a makeup store. Growing up, going to Sephora, Claire’s, or my local CVS was always an interesting experience, to say the least.

As a darker-skinned girl, it was always so difficult to find a company with a foundation or concealer that matches my skin tone. Even if there even were any darker shades, there was never a transition from the lighter shades to the two darker shades they had. And while all my friends were doing swatches on their faces and having fun, I was most likely in the mascara aisle feeling alienated and discouraged.

Black people already face enough discrimination in our lives and it is extremely disappointing that this racism continues in the cosmetics industry. Many makeup brands love to claim that they are inclusive of all skin tones but they always fail to mention that that only applies to light skin tones.

The tarte shape tape foundation shade range is LAUGHABLE pic.twitter.com/l2LSUFdoSG
— MAKEUP (@glowkit) January 13, 2018

As you can see in the attached tweet, Tarte is just one of the many makeup brands that will have at most three foundation shades for darker-skinned people while people with lighter skin tones get eight new shades. How is it that brands understand different complexions among white people, but when it comes to Black people we’re all supposed to fit under the two shades they provide us with? Though Tarte eventually improved their shade range, having a wide range of shades should be a priority at the first release of a product, instead of an afterthought.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by YSL Beauty Official (@yslbeauty)

Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) was also under a lot of fire in 2017 after posting an Instagram picture with the original caption saying “…available in 22 shades light to dark, to suit all skin tones.” To claim that they have foundation shades for all skin tones is ridiculous if they came out with only one darker shade and 21 different variations of the color tan.

After doing some digging into YSL’s social media, I found a more recent post from June (during the Black Lives Matter protests) where they state that discrimination has no justification. As I was scrolling through the replies to this hypocritical tweet, I found a reply that really resonated with me.

Oh yeah? @YSL then why my sister & I, couldn't find any of your products at Sydney airport that matched our Indian skin tone? To our delight we discovered that day that apparently those kiosks are only to serve white, pale skins! #Hypocrisy
— nishatsaleri (@walk_swim_fly) June 4, 2020

A Twitter user shared her story about the time the company didn’t provide shades that matched her skin tone either. YSL is just one of the many companies that used the movement as a way to cover up the fact that they care about people of color when in reality, they never did. We don’t want to see your tone-deaf tweets, we want to be able to walk into your store knowing that you will have a range of foundation shades that suits all skin tones.

When other companies have been confronted about their lack of darker foundation shades, they blame it on the fact that they do not have the correct undertones for darker shades. This lousy excuse does not justify their lack of inclusivity. If the companies were really trying to maximize the amount of money they could make, they would learn to create shades for all skin tones.

Although I am happy that brands like Fenty Beauty and Morphe are inclusive of all skin tones, they shouldn’t receive praise and popularity for something that should be the norm. It’s not normal to have to actively search for brands that will cater to our skin tones. Black people, and other dark-skinned people of color, deserve better.

On another note, we also need to talk about the strange names that darker shades get. A pattern that I have noticed is that lighter shades are given very angelic names like cloud and swan, while darker shades are named after foods like cocoa and coffee. The Sephora product below provides a good example.

https://www.sephora.com/product/born-this-way-P397517?skuId=2084705

In a Cosmopolitan article on this topic, beauty writer Keeks Reid states “If the dark shades are going to be fetishized and made into a hot drink/pudding, the lighter shades should get the same treatment too.” The way we name foundation shades should be the same for everyone.

Makeup brands need to do better. Not supplying shades for darker-skinned people is inexcusable and highly disappointing. Creating more shades only brings benefits to a company as it broadens the number of people who are able to use their products. There is no justification for their blatant disregard of us.

Speaking about our experiences is just the beginning. To ensure that changes are made, we need to keep calling on beauty brands to make sure their shade ranges are inclusive from the time of release. I would also like to see beauty gurus on social media using their platform to amplify our voices so we can hopefully see change.

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Image credits: TheKit.ca
The White Savior Complex in Media and Activism

October 27th, 2020

Throughout the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests and conversations about racial justice that have been taking place since May, the white savior complex has become very prevalent. Faima Bakar, a writer for the British newspaper Metro, defines a white savior complex as “a white person who acts to help non-white people, but in a context which can be perceived as self-serving.”

Many white people on social media have used the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as other social justice causes, as a way to make themselves look good by posting aesthetic infographics or performative black squares. This becomes evidence of white-saviorism when they have never engaged in genuine, real-life, conversations about race and their white privilege with their peers.

A classic example of the white savior complex is when people go on mission trips under the guise of helping others, but instead, exploit innocent children for social media gratification.

Many movies also push the white savior narrative. An example is Hidden Figures, a biographical drama film based on the experience of several Black female mathematicians working at NASA during the Space Race. When Katherine, one of the main characters, complains about her long commute to the bathroom because all the ones near her are for white people, her boss goes and tears down the “Colored bathroom” sign to make the restrooms accessible to everyone. This scene never happened in real life and was purposely created so that the audience could view the white boss, Al, as a hero.

In the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird, a Black man is falsely accused of rape. Instead of focusing on the Black man’s anger and problems, the book is about the white “hero” who defends him in court.

Tiktok, a trending social media app, is another hub for white “activists” to pretend they care about racial injustice for views and likes. Instead of amplifying Black voices, they often speak over us. Although Tiktok may just be a very biased app that only places white creators on the For You page, it is no coincidence that most videos talking about the Black lives matter movement are from the same white boys and girls. The trends on TikTok have gone so far to the point where people are doing Black face or having makeup competitions:

What most people on the app don’t understand is that they cannot be self-proclaimed activists and allies. Allyship is more than posting a black square or putting on makeup, it’s standing beside your Black peers when they face racism and educating yourself on white privilege and other racial issues.

Teenagers on TikTok have also turned BLM into an aesthetic created by “alternative girls” who claim to be leftists for supporting the movement.

Images like the one above are extremely aggravating because innocent Black people are being killed left and right while privileged white people are turning it into cute cartoons to fit their feed. The movement does not affect them, so they feel enabled to turn it into an aesthetic that only benefits them, which is harmful to Black people.

Another hallmark of a white savior is an “ally” who makes the movement they’re fighting for all about them. While I was scrolling through my friends’ Instagram stories, I came across this post.

View this post on Instagram

“Strong people stand up for themselves. Stronger people stand up for others.” ~ @ceoofhappyness

A post shared by Quotes by Christie (@quotesbychristie) on Jun 6, 2020 at 12:21pm PDT

The first thing I noticed was that despite the number of likes this post received, no one in the comments was talking about how harmful this statement is. The post is essentially saying that Black people are strong for going through what we go through but white people are stronger for saying something about it. This post truly emphasizes how white people have been centering themselves in the Black Lives Matter movement instead of amplifying Black voices. You are not any stronger for standing beside us in times of injustice, we are stronger for going through everything we do and remaining resilient.

This summer, when all the protests were going on and signing petitions was “trendy,” teenagers on TikTok thought it would be funny to create a petition to change the American flag to a picture of the character Manny from the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Although this may look like a pointless joke, it is angering when something from a comic book gets more signatures than an actual petition of a Black person asking for justice.

While it is important to talk about the flaws in modern-day activism, I think it would be unfair to not talk about how allies should act. Before you post something, think about your intentions. Are you posting this because you like the pattern of the infographic, that you think it will make you look “woke”, or are you posting it because you truly care about educating others and spreading awareness? Focus your attention and allyship on amplifying the voices of Black people, instead of centering yourself in the movement by putting your interests first.
The Adultification and Hyper-sexualization of Black Girls

September 8th, 2020

Content Warning: Sexual Assault

I remember being 12 years old and walking into my local 7-11 eager to buy candy with my white friend. We walked through all the aisles until we saw the candy I liked. I opened my wallet to make sure I had enough money, and so did my friend. As we were walking back to the register, I was stopped and told that I had been stealing. My bag was ripped off of me and was thoroughly checked because “they had proof I stole on camera” I didn’t take anything and when they realized that, they let me go.

Although this may be seen as just an act of precaution or a simple misunderstanding, it was the first time I realized that no matter how young I am, I will always be seen as less innocent.

I had another experience this year when I went to a gas station near my school with friends where I was again, the only Black person there. As I went to check out, the worker told me to open my pockets because he thought I stole something. He later apologized and I never went back there again.

After speaking with my other black friends and hearing about their similar experiences, I became very interested in the topic of the adultification of young Black girls and how we have had our childhoods taken away from us.

According to a study by the Georgetown Law Center, Black girls aged 5-14 are seen to be less innocent and more adult-like compared to young white girls. (Girlhood Interrupted) Professor Michael J. Dumas from U.C. Berkeley believes that this idea originated during slavery when Black kids were not seen as worthy enough to get to play and if they did have normal child-like behaviors, they were severely punished.

photo from insider.com

Adultification also leads to the hypersexualization of young Black girls because we are seen as “too grown.” When society hypersexualizes us, it feeds into rape culture. According to the American Psychological Association, “One in four Black girls will be sexually abused before the age of 18.” Young Black girls are the forgotten survivors of sexual assault and are disproportionally targeted due to the idea that we know more about sex and are more adult-like.

Studies prove that when black women report crimes of sexual assault, they are less likely to be believed compared to white women, and when black men confess to raping black women, they face less jail time compared to white women. Carolyn West and Kalimah Johnson, authors of “Sexual Violence in the Lives of African American Women.” carry on by saying,“black sexual assault survivors are also at greater risk of having PTSD, depression, and abusing drugs later on in their lives.”

The article continues by saying “More than 20 percent of Black women are raped during their lifetimes — a higher share than among women overall.” The hypersexualization of young Black girls takes away our chance of having a normal childhood and pushes a false narrative.

the premature adultification/sexualization of black girls is the reason why almost every black girl you know has experienced SH/SA. it’s a problem that is not discussed enough. period.
— coffee bae (@iamsashakae) June 2, 2020

The adultification of young Black girls is also very prevalent in social media and the entertainment industry. Netflix has recently been under a lot of fire for their new movie premiering called Cuties about a young Black girl joining a twerking dance team.

(Netflix has now changed the cover and description)

What made people upset was the cover of the movie where the 11-year-olds are posing in very revealing clothes. It sickens me how when one of the very first young dark skin girls to be featured as a lead in a Netflix movie, she was over-sexualized and love twerking, a common stereotype made against Black women.

original photo from Netflix.com

Netflix’s description and cover of the film further pushes the idea that young Black girls are more mature for their age.

The adultification and hypersexualization of young Black girls is a deeply rooted issue in our society that will take years to fix. However, by discussing these topics, we can further educate others and get closer to letting Black girls have a childhood where they can just be kids.

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Featured photo credits: huffpost.com