Emancipate yourself from mental slavery; none but ourselves can free our minds. Lyrics to the Redemption Song by the great Bob Marley.
Out of Many One People is the Jamaican motto which symbolizes the country’s multi-racial population resulting from the number of cultures that came together to form the nation. However as harmonious as these words are, the country has and still continues to live under the stern brows of color discrimination with our own Jamaicans at the helm of racial slur.
As one of the countries that literally lived the horrors of slavery, it is sad to know that we are still enslaved to the callous psyche of racism…and in our own back yard. Jamaica, which is primarily made up of descendants of the colonists and immigrants from the Middle East, has one of the most dynamic cultures. It is this ethnic DNA that draws the world to our front steps and has created a sea of people with skin tones ranging from black to brown to white; with all three tones having further variations depending on the mix.
Many terms have been coined by the people using skin color as the basis…Browning, Reds, Blacks, Coolie, and Whitey and so on. Though for the most part, being referred to as any one of the above is harmless, there are times when the label is intended to be and is seen as condescending and disrespectful. Persons that are light in complexion are seen as the superiors and as such are favored; be it a job interview or promotion, the lighter the skin the greater the benefits. Ironically the preference is not always imparted by light skinned counterparts but also by those with darker tones.
In the time of our grandfathers young men and women were frowned upon by their parents when they brought home that ‘special someone’ who was dark in complexion. The parents who associated light skin with beauty, power, money, success and influence saw black skinned people as the opposite; hence they did not see them as fit partners for their children.
Discrimination continues to shine in our modern lives. Many have shared experiences of preferential treatments in hotels, restaurants and stores, where light skinned people would receive better customer service no matter how difficult that customer may be. Because of the correlation to poverty black skinned Jamaicans are continuously trying to prove their worth and place in the country. The more successful ones tend to use an ‘in-your-face’ approach where they display their wealth using the likes of motor cars, houses and attire.
Unfortunately those with less materialistic foundation have sought to change the color of the skin by applying a process known as ‘bleaching’. Bleaching is the application of large doses of skin lightening creams to desired areas of the body, which over time begin to change shades. Whilst this practice is ridiculed by some, it is highly praised by others, especially when users both male and female, feel as though they are reaping the anticipated benefits of social acceptance.
Although the darker race has felt greater negative effects from the color of their skin, both sides have had their share of discrimination. In schools white or brown skinned children are singled out and referred to as being snobs who act as though they are ‘better’ than others. Young women who enter the beauty pageants Miss Jamaica World and Miss Jamaica Universe are robbed of the glory of winning when credit is given to the color of their skin and not the power of the brains. In the corporate world the job promotion that you worked so hard for is said to be handed to you like everything else ‘on a silver platter’ because of the color of your skin if not for the depth of your pocket.
Thankfully the levels of racism have not reached the heights of physical harm to each other, yet the emotional and psychological damage cannot be overlooked, and will only worsen as we remain forever mentally enslaved.
Sources:
http://www.jamaicans.com/articles/primecomments/0902_bleaching.shtml
http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/43/130.html
http://www.jamaicans.com/tourist/overview/symbols.shtml
