the brownskin vs darkskin debate on tiktok

Darkskin vs lightskin... your times up... in this video I discuss colorism, Brown Skin Girl, and the brownskin vs darkskin debate/discourse on tiktok!
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~sources~
Race Is A Social Construct
centerforhealt...
Why Black People Discriminate Among Ourselves: The Toxic Legacy of Colorism
www.theguardia...
Brown Paper Bag Test
en.wikipedia.o...

[@estrellasjournal]

*the fact that having to compare skin color to a paper bag just goes to show how ridiculous the existence of colorism is*

[@no-one00]

@JustA noob that’s the world. Even here in the uk. And in my home at Nigeria too

[@BreeDarcel]

@@no-one00 Exactly. That’s colonization. The world was colonized. Scientists across the world were encouraged to spread false propaganda that backs these current beliefs. Sick.

[@larissalaflore7202]

Colorism is a worldwide issue in Arab, Indian, Asian, Hispanic cultures. It's definitely not just an American or black thing. Skin bleaching is done around the world

[@pleasedonotwatchmychannel]

“You must prove your worth by comparing your natural self to this unnatural thing” SOCIETY!

[@kennynelson7585]

@JustA noob colorism is in every country with poc. stop trying to reduce everything to just an american problem so you don’t have to acknowledge it.

[@PrincessYonna1]

There’s a brown skin vs dark skin debate now? What the heck , I’m kind of glad I’m not aware of everything going on on the internet now

[@lmaoaims]

I need to delete social media because as a dark skinned people I already get enough hate😔🥺

[@Sshazex]

“Now” this has ALWAYS been a debate. I remember being the “I’m not dark skin, I’m brown skin” girl in middle school!

[@PrincessYonna1]

@@Sshazex I thought it was light skin vs dark skin never heard of the brown skin vs dark skin debate until now

[@corn8591]

@d. Max I think it really depends on your surroundings because I've always identified as brown skin because I'm apparently too light to be dark skin, but not light enough to be categorized as light skin. If we go off of the examples shown in the video, I'm probably closest to Nicki's complexion- which is very far off from what was shown to be dark skin. I've never used the label to detract from my highly melanated complexion; in my case it has almost always been the opposite. I fall on the outskirts of what was considered to be light skin in my area, so have always labeled myself as brown skin. However, when my understanding of just how wide the spectrum of complexions is in the black community, I began to consider myself as a dark skin woman. It was actually other dark skin people telling me that I was indeed not dark skin but brown skin, that I fully adopted the label. I feel like what is considered dark and light is fully based on your surroundings (at least in regards to one race at a time because the color spectrum will vary). What is considered dark to someone at a PWI who is used to seeing only light skin/mixed kids will be completely different than what is considered dark to someone who is surrounded by a variety of different complexioned black people. That's likely why you've gotten mixed responses from others about what exactly you are.

[@DaeFranklin]

The comment I was looking for

[@melisdantou]

my big issue w/ it becoming trendy again is that no one ever thinks of literal kids taking in the info. like near 2016 i was like 10 y/o looking up skin lightening techniques in my free time and no one ever discouraged me bc it’s been normalized as “something black kids go through”, it’s so disheartening

[@kennyb1588]

Please I never realized how not normal it was that I was like 12 and looking up how not to tan I had not even witnessed or experienced colorism at that point I just grew up around white people who would pick on me for being black it’s so sad and it shouldn’t be normalized

[@JulianSteve]

Wow, this is sad. Imagine the Black kids on Tik Tok right now. I went through a phase too when I knew my skin color was not “desirable” (this phase happened in elementary and middle school), but for some reason I never wanted to change my skin complexion or tan less. I love being Black and it took me until high school to realized that those people were either racist or colorist at the time. High school was a roller coaster too, but definitely a “decent experience” LoL😂‼️

[@klaraluna5861]

I'm filipino and as a kid i love swimming in summer/vecation just like any other kids , but after every time i go swimming i ask my mom to buy me whitening lotions because i don't want to get darker ,here in philippines some people think lighter skin is beautiful as a kid i believed that but now i don't want to stay indoor so much cuz i will look like a white radish or a raw peeled potato , just want to say you shouldn't believed negative opinion about beauty standards, your beautiful with than skin that hair and that size. Love ya'll

[@guccimane6407]

Same thing goes in the lives of almost every brown Asian Ps a Pakistani over here

[@sabrinarachel6053]

For real though... there are so many younger kids on TikTok that can be negatively influenced by what they see, including this ‘trend.’

[@oreldean]

I honestly feel like all black people are brown, just different shades of brown. Light brown, medium brown and dark brown.

[@planetshlorp]

This!!!

[@bubeudeh]

same!

[@sarli2196]

Literally we are all brown just shades lol

[@neattea3452]

And get this: *no one is one color.* We have many undertones(or tones in general), hues, shades etc. Otherwise you’d prolly look like a cartoon character. Why y’all think when people are painting a realistic portrait they use multiple paint colors for a person🕺🏽

[@radwaali1224]

exactly me too I don't understand the labeling brown skin

[@imani0nline]

It’s so weird in an attempt to be inclusive by recognising all the different shades of black, it some how became exclusive becoming another tool to divide our communities and feed into colorism .

[@abbeysnails]

I completely agree.

[@sunnyorange180]

!!!

[@JulianSteve]

Exactly... Very distasteful. This could have been used as an educational topic, but went over some people’s heads💯

[@sophjadv]

!!!!!

[@ninaagnant9083]

I see you everywhere 👀

[@yourfavoritepessimisticexi8041]

I think Megan Thee Stallion is the perfect example of how being brown-skinned has both its privileges and its limitations. I don't think she would be nearly as successful as she is currently if she was of a darker complexion. Despite not being light-skinned, she is still of a lighter complexion when compared to dark skins and so she was granted a space. However, due to her "darker" complexion and her tall height, Megan has been repeatedly stripped of her femininity. She has been purposely misgendered so many times despite fitting the idea of what a "woman" is supposed to look like with her hourglass body and feminine face. In the end, her brown skin was able to help her secure a spot in the music industry, but because she still isn't light-skinned or white, she isn't afforded the same privileges as someone who is.

[@nicolegoose567]

Is this a thing discussed within the black community? Bc I’m hispanic and I totally see her as a sex goddess and rly feminine and badass. That sounds wack tho. Also when I used to be a cashier this old Mexican man was buying a magazine with meg on it and was smiling the whole time 😂

[@Borahborah9139]

This just shows how relative all of this is: to me, Meghan is dark-skinned. There are very few people to me that are in this middle spot of "brown-skinned". H.E.R, Solange, and yara Shahidi are. Idk it's all so fluid and relative.

[@juliet8186]

@@nicolegoose567 yep, it's discussed a lot. a lot of us love meg, but a lot of ppl (ESP black men) hate and demonize her for the reasons in the original comment, not even bc they dislike her music. tee noir made a rly good video explaining how this manifested when meg was shot.

[@kelseyissastar]

She's protected, graced and highly favored.

[@pelo4040]

@@Borahborah9139 I think you've misunderstood what brownskinned looks like. Most of the people you mentioned are actually lightskinned. Yara is definitely light, so is Solange. Brownskinned is more like Jennifer Hudson, Mary J Blige, Keke Palmer, etc.

[@archivedbytrish]

As a south asian american, my experience with colorism is very different. Colorism is so so *so* deeply rooted in asian communities, from a young age we are told the importance of fair skin. I am more light skinned than my siblings, and we were always put against as one as more "beautiful." One time one of my mom friends (who is also south asian) came with her daughter to my house who was more dark than me, her mom immediately said to my mom how "beautiful" and "fair" and "white passing" 🤢 I was. I told her it doesn't matter and that her daughter is beautiful as well but that doesn't do anything. I wish as a whole community we stop putting poc against another poc. Skin Bleaching products are a billion dollar industry and it truly breaks my heart. I would also grow up pretending to be mixed (even though I'm not). I'm truly embarased of the fact that I did that and blame the colorism in my community as well as the Beauty standards and the need of wanting to fit in at my school.

[@pravneeet4873]

yes like my skin was literally bleached when i was a baby

[@samanthamorris2744]

This is literally what the black community does we are openly colorist social media is showing only part of this sick colorism shit

[@archivedbytrish]

@@pravneeet4873 I hope you're doing well that's messed up

[@cashmereglow7549]

I agree. I've noticed that when white men say they like (i.e. fetishize) Asian women, they're always referring to fair skinned Asian women. Darker Asian women are also very beautiful. The large brown eyes, dark luscious hair, long thick eyebrows/eyelashes, smooth skin, etc. Colorism is rampant in most POC cultures.

[@archivedbytrish]

@@cashmereglow7549 I agree dark skin women are very beautiful

[@DaeFranklin]

Y’all gotta be under 25 if your just now hearing “ brown skin”, we existed before Beyoncé and indie arie songs ❤️

[@og-greenmachine8623]

Beyoncé ain’t brown skin she’s a fucking Redbone creole. We are part white and part Indian🙄 It’s just white people trying to re-design everything based on what they were about to do Brown skin are dark skin people You’re either dark or light If you’re not light-skinned? 👉🏽your dark

[@MooBerry2009]

Beyonce wasn't that light skinned back with the original destiny's child she was lighter than the rest but you knew she was black.

[@og-greenmachine8623]

@@MooBerry2009 Hmmmm....🕵🏽‍♂️ I wouldn’t be skeptical but I’ve seen pictures of Serena Williams lately. These people are losing their goddamn minds

[@gyarugirl]

im not under 25 but ive had this term since i was little...im actually confused other bw havent. i guess its because im from the uk?

[@og-greenmachine8623]

@Ms.C I’m CIA myself You’re fucking laughable bro

[@Raetheforce]

People really don't realize how much featurism plays a part in all this.

[@lmaoaims]

Yes I does smmm

[@lightskinguilt5622]

Featurism is not real

[@kirag9509]

@@lightskinguilt5622 Featurism is ABSOLUTELY a thing. In fact, (for example) many Asian cultures THRIVE on featurism (as well as colorism). I’ve heard old East Asian women saying they wish their grandchildren will have a high nose bridge, light hair, and big eyes (even if none of these features are present in the parents or grandparents). It’s also why even if you DO have light skin, there’s still this pressure to confirm to Eurocentric beauty standards

[@sumlem]

@@lightskinguilt5622 this is a concept that has been discussed and studied. A singular person stating otherwise doesn't make that fact go away

[@Raetheforce]

@@lightskinguilt5622 one look at your channel is all I needed to not take this comment seriously

[@woahaah6326]

The only reason why I identify with being "brownskinned" is because when I'm around lightskins I'm aware of how much darker I am than them,but around darkskins I get called "lightskinned".Whenever people would go into a debate about skin tones when it came to me they would struggle. So I go with being brownskinned 🤷🏾‍♀️

[@mickeyminecraftgirl6077]

I feel this as a biracial girl who isn’t lightskin. some people don’t believe I’m even half white. I have no clue where to fit tbh sigh

[@sasha44486]

I rlly hate the fact that in the black community we have to kinda "pick or choose" our skin shade whenever i am around black people and those convos come up and people are always trying to tell the other where they belong so i always say "we are all black at the end of the day and we shouldn't have to put ourselves in those categories!"

[@rhino8817]

@@sasha44486 GOD THIS^^^ like can we stop looking at the world through white people's eyes???

[@DaeFranklin]

RIGHTTTTT

[@praisesade]

I know I’m not even brownskin but LOL my friend goes through that too 🤦🏾‍♀️

[@katy9569]

I'm pretty sure Beyonce used the term "brown skin" to include all shades of black women, but as usual we can't have nice things and they used the term for more categories.

[@KaiBellarose]

This is how I perceived it as well

[@GDL364]

That term has always existed

[@janay6076]

I thought She was talking about her daughter who has brown skin

[@senah5523]

She was just talking about the color of skin,which isnt white

[@havelah4376]

@@janay6076 It does apply to her daughter, but in the video for it in *Black is King* there was a range of black skin tones featured.

[@CherryChia23]

Beyonce is most definitely a light skinned woman. There are different shades within ranges. You can be lupita and be dark and also be kelly Rowland and be dark. Beyonce is light skinned. Just because someone like Mariah Carey or other bi racials like Alicia keys exist does not then remove beyonce from the category.

[@Igboman87]

This comment right here 👊🏾

[@nesadcruz7840]

If she was Asian she would be considered dark , so Its all relative

[@CherryChia23]

@@nesadcruz7840 smh. Clearly you didn’t read. She’s not Asian. This conversation has nothing to do with Asians.

[@nesadcruz7840]

@@CherryChia23colour is neutral and Asians have always identified as Yellow to Brown. It gets confusing when others give it a different definition.

[@kaneishabishop9570]

Right. Beyonce is light

[@yourfavoritepessimisticexi8041]

It's hard deciding whether to label yourself as dark skin or brown skin because different people perceive you in different ways. To some, you are dark skin. To others, you are brown. It makes it hard to know which one is accurate or not and many are hesitant to identify with one because they don't want to claim the experience of being dark skin if it does not apply to them, but they also don't want to come across as self-hating. It's quite a pickle.

[@melaninathegreat2822]

The issue comes when Black ppl are comparing themselves to Biracial people. If one parent is white then you are biracial. Light skins have 2 black parents (eg. Beyonce, Taraji p. Henson, Ciara). There is nuance to LS, BS, DS categories. Most of us are in flux between 2 categories depending on the season. We should recognize that DS have the worst of colorism yet also embrace the fluidity of our melanin🥰. 🖤Black is beautiful in every shade🖤

[@nailswithkams]

This so true

[@chillin5703]

@@melaninathegreat2822 I don't mean to be rude or anything like that, but I've been noticing some people in these spaces separating "black people" from "biracial people" and I always have to ask why. Y'all separate "black" from "biracials" but then include lightskins with "black", despite the fact that many lightskins (and non-lightskins, for that matter) are functionally biracial or otherwise "mixed" and would be considered so the second they leave the and go to, say, Brazil or DR etc. At the end of the day, I think it's a bit of a pointless distinction to make if we're talking about two fundamentally "different" groups. We gonna say Obama isn't black? He looks more stereotypically "black" then a whole lot of Black people I know; probably lives it too. When we start making these distinctions, we should think about the broader implications of what come with them, I often don't think people do. You start distinguishing between "black" and "biracial", you're gonna find within only a couple of generations that a whole lot of people you currently think are "black" won't think they are, just like it is elsewhere. And I don't know if that's really a good way for us collectively to forward our interests.

[@lysabelle3990]

@@chillin5703 I have noticed this also and I think the reason, or at least the reason I have heard is that by accepting everyone with even partial black parentage as black it is allowing especially in the media for mixed race people to claim black and dominate black spaces because they are preferred. So while I like Halle berry for example, accepting her as black allowed her to replace an actual full black person in roles that would have gone to them. The reason why people separate LS black people and biracial people is one has another identity they can claim as biracial, someone who just happens to be light skin but has black grandparents and parents doesn't they are black and regardless of how light they are that is what they are. This is just my understanding of why some want to make the distinction.

[@chillin5703]

@@lysabelle3990 why are my replies being deleted?

[@Itzkeisha]

Yes let’s have this conversation 🤘🏾

[@shananananana]

Hiii Keisha, how are you doing today?

[@TheSpaceman332211]

You are either good looking or you are not. Skin colour doesn't come into it. You are either talented or you are not, you are either intelligent or you are not. Skin colour doesnt doesn't determine these things.

[@_-lydia-_8175]

Hey💝😀

[@TheSpaceman332211]

@@LaraUAE so what are u saying? Just say 2 great looking women, 1 dark skinned and 1 light skinned are going for the same role or job, do u believe the light skinned woman will be preferred?

[@corn8591]

@@TheSpaceman332211 Yes. That's usually how these things work, unless the role is specifically type-casting for darker complexioned women.

[@KolossalYouth]

I'm dark skinned and there is no need to classify myself as you can see exactly what I am when you look at me. I was fortunate to have been raised up by beautiful black women and my grandfather, who is the darkest person on the planet lol, and they always made sure I knew that our dark skin was beautiful. When I was picked on, even by other dark skinned kids, I never wished I was lighter (because I had that strong pro-black foundation at home, there was no room for colorism). Just like with every other thing I was bullied for, I just wished I could be accepted for who I am.

[@idab6864]

You're beautiful. I'm sorry this is a thing that you deal with

[@KolossalYouth]

@@idab6864 Thank you! 🖤🖤🖤🖤 however, I'm doing just fine now.

[@sasha44486]

If thats you in ur pfp.......um ur very gorgeous😍

[@KolossalYouth]

@@sasha44486 Yes it is me and thank you!!! 🖤🖤🖤🖤

[@Empress-gr8]

Why do dark skinned people have such perfect skin? And I'm not saying that darkskinned men and women don't struggle with skin issues. I mean anything is possible. Just like it's possible that unicorns exist. But have you seen one though? Exactly.

[@morganmonroee]

As a person with a dark friend who was bullied relentlessly in school about simply how dark her skin was, there is definitely a difference and I respect it. I’m brown skin and never once been bullied about my skin (although I was bullied for other things lol). You never hear “oh you’re pretty for brown skin girl” they only say it in reference dark skin. Dark skin men will actively avoid and force themselves not to be attracted to other dark skin women because they don’t want to have dark skin babies. They don’t really question being with a brown skin woman. You notice in movies it’s usually a darker man with a lighter women, very seldom is it vice versa. The distinction is real and my dark skin friend would check me if I was calling myself dark skin, because i didn’t live that experience

[@kathleenking47]

Whites for this. With hair color Brunette men with blonde women..blonde men are never with brunettes much..unless they're not white.

[@Butterflyangelic]

💯💯❤️‍🩹

[@isa_virtual]

Exactly. I'm brownskin with a darkskin sister and the same happened.

[@isa_virtual]

@pr1.8ijmk brownskin people exist, whether you like it or not 🥱

[@seokjinjisooperiod880]

Same happened to me I was in korea and korean men ignored my dark skin friend in the club and I'm a brown skin girl and its sad

[@Ben-my5cl]

I feel like the whole brown skin vs dark skin comes from the way some people use the term brown skin to avoid any input in colorism. So much people display brown skin as a middle child watching to siblings fighting completely disconnected from the situation when in reality there are right in the situation

[@Gross126]

If you’re brown skinned you don’t really deal with many of the issues dark skinned people deal with. Do it’s unfair to claim they’re the same.

[@danielle7127]

@@Gross126 yeah I completely agree. I feel like an imposter if I claim either. But I will say that I do support darker skin women in the fight against colorism.

[@halliegreen]

i thought i was darkskin for so long but I am brownskin because I look brownskin in the winter and darkskin in the summer so I don't try avoiding colourism its just darkskins have it harder than me

[@Ben-my5cl]

@@danielle7127 Understandable. It just that the term brown skin is being over run with people who want to hate and I mean hate being referred to as darkskin or as a way to make themselves basically a centralist in the discussion of colorism. Never really helping the situation and just being there to feel morally superior

[@saraha.1336]

@@Ben-my5cl I never saw anyone do that.

[@alianalukoko3504]

It's odd to me that people are just hearing of the term brown skin in recent years because the term was used my whole life (I'm 19 btw). It was never meant to be offensive or exclusive, it just was a way to categorize shades. It's weird to me that brownskin vs darkskin is becoming a debate the same way light skin vs dark skin was

[@Iheartdolls4ever]

Same. It was never a negative thing. I was called that my entire life.

[@Kissmycrown]

Yea. This is werid I’ve never heard it being used offensively

[@samiasegero5484]

fr

[@mariahnotcarey3370]

No same, and in the south "brown" skin girls get called red, at least where i from.

[@cyancia9567]

I learned lightskin and darkskin just last year- and im 16. Im so glad resources like these that make it easy to learn are starting to pop up more frequently. im honestly embarrassed I had no idea what the world was like for people outside of my own bubble for so many years. its important for people to hear and see things from other lenses.

[@Atroonks]

Brown skinned people don't have it as bad as dark skinned people in terms of colorism, but they don't have it as good as light skinned people either. We're kinda in the middle, just like our skin tone lol

[@b.alexisbeauty5013]

THISSSS and it’s kind of a weird position to be in sometimes.

[@smartyltc20o7]

Yup ive never really faced anyone talking bad about my skin but i don't has lightskin privilege just in the middle

[@tvds8350]

Yeah in terms of colorism.

[@lucindajones701]

Facts

[@theduchessofdarkness1056]

yep

[@gojames1239]

Ive always referred to myself as brown skin. I’m too light to fit in with dark skins but too dark for the light skins. I’ve never felt I fitted in either. I’ve also never personally experienced colorism.

[@beautyandfashion1563]

i always hate whenever someone says “it doesn’t matter, we’re all black tho” as a way to divert the convo from colorism, and i think we should talk about featurism more because ive seen a lot of ppl on tik tok who benefit from it but hate whenever someone points out that they do

[@beckygamez9017]

Thank you, finally someone said this! Its like when someone talks about race and it gets dismissed bc “were all human” or “ we all bleed the same”. Its also crazy that ppl cant acknowledge their privilege when it comes to feauturism the get defensive almost.

[@effpng]

exactly! you can still benefit from colorism and featurism but still deal with racism and ignoring that privilege is ignoring Black people in communities who have to face these issues

[@beautyandfashion1563]

@@beckygamez9017 RIGHT! it’s so insane to see😭 and it sucks because a lot of ppl think that featurism doesn’t exist when it literally does😭

[@beautyandfashion1563]

@@effpng THABK YOU EXACTLY!!

[@puppyprincess2822]

The first step needs to get rid of the one drop rule and make a standard of what black is. The one drop rule created a lot of texurism and featurism tbh

[@effpng]

i think brown skin privilege from what you’ve stated in video also ties in with featurism. colorism, featurism, and racism are really prominent within Black communities and we need to have more discussions specifically with featurism and colorism

[@juh.leeuhh]

It’s very interesting that you never heard of brown skin till TikTok lol it’s always been a term for me so it’s crazy thinking there’s other black people who had no idea

[@JulianSteve]

I always knew the term was out there, but I never identified myself as brown skin. I always say I’m dark skin. I think I’m dark skin, but some people say I’m not, so it’s a slippery slope. Both of my parents are fully Black, so I’m Black regardless 🤷🏾‍♂️😂

[@JordannGeorge]

I thought about it but never heard others talk about it. By "it" I mean the fact that we're literally brown as opposed to black. All of us, except really light black people. I thought of it because people of other races that aren't white (Indian, Hispanic people in Latin America that are mixed with the indigenous people) call themselves brown but we can't? It's weird and all part of the plan of division in lieu of unity I suppose.

[@lmaoaims]

Honestly most toxic trends nowadays come from TikTok 😒

[@irrelevance3859]

I never noticed until my friend pointed it out to me a couple years ago. Excluding lightskinned people who have paler skin tones, I just assumed every black person had the same skin tone, so I thought I had the same skin colour as the other black people around me who were darkskin or also brown skin. I seriously couldn’t tell the difference till I was like 13

[@Sshazex]

!! Literally commented this. My middle school was predominantly black though!

[@jeminist9441]

i think everyone told their sibling they were adopted at some pint

[@mindofpowerlove7166]

Yes! At every pint I get, I tell my younger brothers they are adopted. However, I think that I might actually be the adopted one.

[@lmaoaims]

I told myself I was adopted 😂

[@irrelevance3859]

My brother told me I was adopted lol

[@Osnapitsnotari]

...no

[@kenshix7902]

@@lmaoaims This is me everyday 😔🤦🏽‍♂️

[@glamourhippie7291]

I’m old and not on tiktok but we’ve been using brown skin since I was a kid. I always called myself brownskin because I’m not light or dark I’m somewhere in the middle.

[@samiasegero5484]

same

[@nailswithkams]

The black community is so complicated at times 🙁

[@barbararichardson2747]

Wouldn't be if we all decided to stop the ignorance that divides us.Very unlikely when dignity is for sale.

[@nailswithkams]

@@barbararichardson2747 true

[@zoeywhite4683]

Yesss. I’m glad we are talking about colorism though. And this skin tone versus another. All that

[@AnythingLounge]

It wouldn't happen if white people would stop thinking it's okay to use racist stereotypes against mixed people with black ancestry smh

[@jojohyunjin5198]

@A. G. what…

[@AngelineLuxe]

It's very interesting that brown skin is seen as a new term, I've viewed myself as brown skin all my life because as you said I'm not dark enough to identify with the experiences of dark skin girls, but not light enough to benefit from colorism. I feel like the difference is if you get upset with people calling you dark skin if you're brown skin. I personally would not "correct" someone and tell them I'm not dark skin, because I can understand how I definitely don't pass the paper bag test and being called dark is not an insult to me. It's sad seeing people go out of their way to distance themselves from the label of dark skin

[@shadayy3]

These are my exact thoughts !

[@blueiris1542]

What wrong with correcting someone that you're not what they say/think that you are? lol If someone calls me dark skin, personally I would correct them and tell them I'm brownskin!

[@sm1purplmurderedme583]

exactly. i don’t have light skin privilege however i wouldn’t be discrimated agaisny like darkskins are

[@Orlanzepol123]

if someone classifies you as dark skinned means most likely you are. And many people who consider themselves not dark enough to be dark skinned are probably dark skinned. Many would consider Halle Berry medium brown when she’s closer to light skinned.

[@brookesmith6998]

Lawd, yet another reason why I'm glad I'm not on Tik Tok 😂 I remember people using the term brown-skinned growing up, but I don't remember it being nearly as divisive as it is now. When people try to differentiate between brown-skinned and dark-skinned it's difficult because its so relative and dependent upon who you're talking too. I studied abroad in Tanzania last year and a dude asked me if I considered myself light-skinned and I laughed out loud. As someone who grew up in the States I've always thought of myself as a dark-skinned person. But when you try to make classifications based on a construct of course things are going to be subjective.

[@amandas1183]

This tik tok generation is just whew-people need to raise their kids

[@mandalove3408]

In all honesty, Tik Tok has divided us even more.

[@LaytonObserves]

This fascination with further dividing black people based on their skin tone is so boring. I understand different tones _can_ connote different perceptions, but people that _self identify_ as a shade I'm like ???

[@GoldenRainbow1987]

So much this.. I honestly feel like it's meant to exhaust us, keep us from the real fight. Or we only pick up fights like these bc they're easier (in our minds) to topple than the bigger issues of society that need to be dismantled.

[@roots4140]

It's really sad. If we put one tenth as much energy into fighting racism and dismantling white supremacy as we did by dividing ourselves into ridiculous and impossible categories, where would we be? During the summer, is one supposed to identify as dark skinned; then jump back into the light skinned bucket during the winter. It's just ridiculous really.

[@purplelove010]

What's even more annoying is people trying to tell you who you're not

[@the_mulattos]

Yeah they're divided by according to how attractive they are.. it's phenotypism and behaviorism you don't need all this other language

[@the_mulattos]

And skin tone is always a straw man because it's not the skin tone it's the other traits which vary along with the skin tone

[@indracodone4422]

Melanin is melanin and if you have it you just beautiful to me. simple.

[@vickyyyy]

THIS.

[@frumpusnumpus]

POINT. BLANK. PERIODT. If people had a way to measure melanin levels in different skins, they would absolutely use that to separate themselves and the black community even more. It bothers me because all of this light vs brown vs dark is not too far fetched from the whole brown paper bag test. What's the point???

[@katherinemariv8856]

If everyone with melanin is beautiful then none of them are beautiful. There has to be a standard. Sorry to break it to you bud.

[@thedestroyer9024]

@@katherinemariv8856 you make no sense. Everyone can be beautiful. There doesn't have to be a standard.

[@katherinemariv8856]

@@thedestroyer9024 there will always be standard. A hierarchy is inevitable within every society. If everyone is beautiful, then beauty losses it’s meaning.

[@sunshineluck5838]

IDK if its just a Caribbean thing but Brown or brown-skinned was always a thing I was called. Even my indian friends use the term

[@morghanjulien4370]

ik this is late but I am from the Caribbean and everyone calls people who aren't dark skin, brown skin. It's interesting to see how colour is different in different countries.

[@Kingofthenet2]

I’m half carribean and I also use that term always

[@yeahhhmannnitsmikaaaa]

I’m blasian so in my house there was never really any talk about being lighter is better. It’s when I started secondary school (kinda like middle school and high school mixed together) and I hung out mostly with other Asians that I learned about colorism. I definitely experienced it because even my closest friends would joke about my skin tone and make comments about it. They stopped as we got older, but it hurt a lot. I just think it’s sad that a certain skin colour is favoured over another.

[@michellebello5098]

You're gorgeous

[@lizali5588]

Did you ever tell them how you felt? If so did they ever apologize?

[@yeahhhmannnitsmikaaaa]

@@michellebello5098 Thank u that’s very sweet

[@yeahhhmannnitsmikaaaa]

@@lizali5588 I never really got to tell them since I don’t talk to them regularly anymore because of college. It’s kind of a harmful part of asian culture, east and south, to compare skin tones.

[@adrianflo6481]

Is it true that asians in america just love to use the N word for some reason? Like they never got the memmo and from a culture that just embraces it and doesnt care about societal rules.

[@tacrewgirl]

India Arie, a black woman singer/musician from the early 2000s known for her "acoustic soul" vibes also had a beautiful song called "Brown Skin". And, her song "Video" is a great listen.

[@victoria-gx8sb]

She's my everything

[@antoinette4995]

Exactly, not sure why this is so "new" to everyone

[@Gab-bs8fo]

"that is until white people start running out of people lol" WHEN I TELL U I WHEEZED--

[@butterfliesandwaffles6335]

7:10

[@bubeudeh]

PLSSS

[@fearless_cloud]

Lmao for some people being white really is like being pureblooded in Harry Potter 🤦‍♀️ smh

[@fearless_cloud]

Sometimes I honestly worry that people are gonna start selectively breeding themselves and other people to isolate "pure" bloodlines. I wouldn't put it past people. I can imagine cults of entirely gingers like "we have to protect our sacred heritage". I know it's hypothetical but I'm annoyed just thinking about it lol. People are wack.

[@zamiyahromero]

I’m 15 and all my life I’ve heard of the term brown-skin simply being the in between of light skin and dark skin. I myself have always been considered to be brown skin or dark skin. Some people are simply in between. It’s weird to me that there’s an issue here.

[@FloEbem]

Ooh “blackness was constructed to be inclusive” I never thought of it that way that was so insightful

[@israeliana]

We can't use the colonizers ideology. RACE was constructed to separate but Black is always from 2 Black parents or 3+ Black grandparents. It's about majority Black African DNA. That's why you can see the haplotype blocks of those from Black African DNA. White people don't have a hold on what Blackness is. All we know is thy genetically and phenotypically we are connected as people of majority Black African descent. And someone who has a non Black parent doesn't have that which is why they are not Black. They can be Afro-ethnic which means you have at least 1 parent, but non Black men and women can't have Black children.

[@missNCW]

@@israeliana white people don't have a hold on what blackness is, and you and other black people don't get yo gatekrep blackness. People, especially in america, always want to make rules on who does and does not count as a black person but then make exceptions when it suits you. Beyonce Alicis Keys Obama just name 3. But there are hundreds of exceptions. For the average person, no such exceptions are granted. If you knew how it felt to be mixed and then treated like your blackness doesn't count, you would be more considerate in your approach. No one chose to be mixed or light or brown. Society is harder on dark skinned black people. We know that. It's also hard on mixed people. Not a call for sympathy but the fact is, it is. They have to deal with that, then be told they might as well not even identify as a mixed person and to MAKE SURE that they mention the other part of them even though they are never treated as a white or asian person, ever. Society doesn't work that way. No need to constantly tell mixed people they don't count. You don't decide who is and isn't black. It's not necessary to analyse their parents. We all know what and who we are. We didn't chose it. You don't get to make up rules about what grandparents and parents make you. Then another person has their own rules. So as non 100% black people, so many think they're 100% but aren't, we're supposed to wait for you to validate us. Leave us alone. We didn't claim to be 100%.

[@polifonyann]

It was also economic. The white slave masters needed to keep the money in white hands. So their biracial offspring (conceived in slave barns) could not claim money or inheritance because they were just considered black.

[@polifonyann]

@@israeliana boom

[@polifonyann]

@@missNCW black people better hate keep blackness. Cause every culture is gatekeeping their culture. Biracial blacks mixed with other races are considered biracial not fully of the other race. Black people need to get pn code. Everybody's not black. I'm not talking about multigenerational light skinned blacks like willow smith for example. I'm talking 50%ers

[@davichigbue1835]

People also don't understand the effects it has on darker toned people such as myself. I'm "the dark-skinned girl" no matter who I'm around. I have a dark tone with an orange/yellow undertone. People like me don't get to discuss if they're "brownskin" or "darkskin", we just are dark-skinned. Period. So it becomes a dagger to your self esteem when you see someone around your tone fight SO hard to be seen or called brown-skinned. Or straight up drag you to filth when you say, "You're dark skin like me!" or "It's nice to meet another dark-skinned person!" like it is an insult to look like you.

[@ExoticalsUnited]

i agree. why cant we just celebrate all of the beautiful shades in the black community?

[@Happiness1876]

Get therapy and love it self

[@davichigbue1835]

@Kate GIbs This/My comment isn't for people like you who simple choose that label because it best fits them and their levels of privilege. It was more directed towards those who fight and belittle dark-skinned people for calling them dark-skinned if that makes any sense. As long as it isn't taken as an insult or an attack to be called dark-skinned to you, I have no problem with it

[@chrisharris2367]

Dark skin was seen as beautiful to me The pretty girls were the ones w long hair talk and slim and grey or green eyes whether they were light medium or dark

[@Kjstyles4317]

I totally agre

[@a.e5220]

“You can’t solve a problem if you can’t even talk about it” YES

[@destini9336]

Brown skin privilege is essentially not being picked apart by colorism, that is how I learned I was brownskin growing up. I have light skin family members and dark skinned family members and I peeped how I wasn’t discussed in colorist conversations (whether in praise or disapproval) lol I was just there 🤷🏾‍♀️ I’m not on Tiktok right now but it’s disappointing to see that this is now such a difficult discussion on there, this won’t do well for young kids/teenagers trying to find confidence 😕

[@momon.1697]

I’m so glad this is being talked about more, especially to children who are growing up and seeing how people look at them based on their complexion. I wish I had those books about different shades when I was an actual child, because that’s when I became aware of it and where I stood. I wish it were emphasized more that it doesn’t mean you’re any more or less pretty. Being different shades shouldn’t be used to rank but to celebrate how different and beautiful black can be.

[@cocoapeach]

I'm 51 years old and been called brown skin all my life. I never was called light skin or dark skin. Also, I was not put on a pedestal, nor was I ridiculed, or teased or what have you. In the black community, in 1970s Virginia, people my skin tone were just described as brown skin. Kinda like the default plain, standard issue regular brown. Thelma and Wilona brown.

[@crystalclear6759]

@Ms.C I understand you sista ... when you brown skin you kinda gotta find out here you belong ... one thing I hate in the black community is they always wanna through brown skinned black women in dark or light categories!!! I just see brown skins as brown skin periodt !

[@tommykimon]

Same, my mom is light skinned but always told me I was lucky because I was right in the middle. I'm not dark or light.

[@crystalclear6759]

@@tommykimon same thing !!! My dad was dark skinned or about the same complexion like kids black and he saw me as light skin when I’m really brown skin lol ... my mom was light skin and she always told me your not that dark anyways so I’m definitely call u brown skin

[@crystalclear6759]

@Ms.C exactly!!! When a brown skinned black women or brown skin man speaks up on colorism there’s always that one dark skin or light skin calling us out for speaking the truth ... I’m getting tired of it

[@invisiblerevolution]

I'm light BROWN SKIN too.... (darker than light skins, lighter than darker shades of brown) the safest SHADE of blackness. LoL Always thought to myself...... DARK skin blacks get to be; *edgy dangerous and rugged.* LIGHT skin blacks get to be; *pretty and exotic.* And I'm just this SAFE BORING non-exotic, non-edgy, skin color.

[@tesssavanessa2312]

I’m lightskin and in Germany in my class I’m the darkest but in my home country Gambia 🇬🇲 I’m very light...some of the Americans that claim to be darkskin would be considered light in west Africa...and some of the “brown skins” are the same color as me and I’m mixed white and black...so I don’t get the system in America tbh

[@niax6920]

Even in the US... it’s regional. Jill Scott for example is considered light-skin in Philly where she’s from, but in the midwest and Cali, she’d be brown-skin.

[@MickeyAndMore]

@@niax6920 it’s not regional I’m from ny and she’s brown skinned

[@niax6920]

@@MickeyAndMore Yeah, she’s brownskin to me too, I don’t get it 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@simplymariama]

🇬🇲❤️!

[@Intellectualrigor]

Black Americans are 25 percent European. We're a bit lighter than Africans overall.

[@pencilwisdom6161]

Ik people are not trying to say beyonce and Nicki minaj are brown skin, they are lightskin. Thee OG representation of lightskin in music. Brown skin is Meg thee stallion, and lizzo. Normani, Jackie Aina, Naomi Campbell are darkskin, that's where darkskin starts, coco brown, then deepens into Duckie thots and Nyma Tangs. It's really not a hard concept to grasp.

[@Orlanzepol123]

Megan Thee Stallion is light skinned. Lizzo is light skinned, Normani is dark skinned. Naomi is dark skinned.

[@estrellasjournal]

since I haven’t been on tiktok, I find it so interesting that the term brownskin seems more popular than lightskin now

[@timtam.skates]

i haven't been on tiktok in a while... this debate is interesting. personally i feel there is no need to seperate brownskin from darkskin. it feels a bit redundant. but on the other hand, i totally understand where people are coming from and why they need it. this is a tough topic but i think you did a great job analyzing it amanda! 💕

[@brithewomannequin]

Really like this conversation. I think it's something that needs to be had. But the term brown skin isn't new at all. When I was growing up there were already very distinct labels for black ppl put in place, there was light skin, brown skin, dark skin, high yellow, blue black, redbone, yellow bone, etc... It is not new. Also I think Beyonce would definitely be considered light skinned the black community.

[@EnlightenedGoldenBeauty]

I find it funny when young people say something isn't new because it's been around your whole 12 years of life lol. Brown skinned category is definitely a new thing in the black community

[@shay529]

@@EnlightenedGoldenBeauty is it? When I was younger it wasn’t and I am 28

[@brithewomannequin]

@@EnlightenedGoldenBeauty I'm 29 and I've heard it my whole life.

[@ladyrae8164]

@@EnlightenedGoldenBeauty Girl really? The word brown skin is old 👌...

[@raymonds7492]

It’s been around forever. The word simp is 100 years old. The internet is just blowing stuff up.

[@KatieBadenhorst]

I remember when "Brown skin girl" first dropped some people were mad because various women of color also wanted to claim it (darker Indian, Asian women etc), and some many women in the black community said that "It wasn't for them". While that may be true, these women still face colorism in their own communities so I think it's great to celebrate all the darker shades.

[@MickeyAndMore]

Well this is about black women and so was the song

[@KatieBadenhorst]

@@MickeyAndMore does it really matter who the song is about? Does it matter if it makes dark skinned Indian, Filipino, Brazilian or Africa American girls feel beautiful?

[@in.themeantime.]

@@KatieBadenhorst this

[@yema4755]

@@KatieBadenhorst yes I think it does and you clearly do as well which is why you connect with the part about brown skin. If it wasn’t specific you would not feel like it was made for you to relate to. The issue is it IS about black brown skin women. But what happens is people take over things and the people who made it don’t get to enjoy it because another hierarchy forms. Take the natural hair community. It started with women with type four hair but it got taken over my mixed/type three hair women. Now that’s not saying someone can’t partake in the celebration of what is being uplifted but it is very important to remember who these movements are created for and why. It is completely unfair and sad to think that black women should be inclusive with something they created out of them being excluded. And let’s not forget that there are deeper things in the black community such as hair that are included in these movements (and in the song lyrics which are quite specific to black women and their hairstyles) that are also important that if we just toss aside would take away from the full intention of the song or movement. It’s great to enjoy the song and relate to it but that relation should be used publicly to understand black women not use it for your own movement. And if you’d like something like that for your own community or something more general, make one. No one is stopping anyone from doing it and it would set a precedent of taking action for one’s self (as black women are doing) and not just taking over something because you can somewhat fit into it.

[@rbedi880]

The music video of Brown Skin Girl had an Indian woman in it

[@KuncanDastner]

this is such a good topic I've been waiting to see someone cover this

[@Alltherestofus]

Colorism in general or it’s relation to Tik too because there are loads of videos here in KZbin where colorism in covered

[@chellenicki2805]

You’re right on the money about the general privileges afforded brown skin women depends on their features!I’d be interested to hear your take on lighter brown vs light skin. I’m about the shade of Nicki Minaj and I don’t feel like I fit any of the categories of light, brown, or dark skin. I have been told I’m light skin while some will say I’m not (which I agree) but when I say I’m brown skin others disagree with that. I feel like there’s so little discourse on lighter brown shades which surprises me since I feel like we are majority in a society where most black people have some white ancestry.

[@BellesView]

Agreed. When I was growing up, hair length and eye color were the features used to determine whether brown skin girls were “exotic” or not. A brown skin girl with long hair was assumed to have Native American ancestry and thus deemed more interesting. It’s unfortunate.

[@ExoticalsUnited]

well nicki minaj is light skinned in my opinion, any time ive ever heard anyone describe her (especially black guys) they would describe her as light skinned. i think your facial features and hair texture play a big role as well.

[@missaaliyaha]

I always thought brown skin was more common in a society with black people who have mixed heritage

[@praisesade]

@@ExoticalsUnited she isn’t lightskin she’s brownskin

[@praisesade]

Too me from your pfp idk if that’s you but you look brownskin.

[@Sshazex]

My mother is a bit darker than me and she calls me “little brownie” lol. Personally, I stopped classifying myself as “brown skin” when I realized I was doing it to separate myself from dark skin people. I now just say I’m a dark skin black woman. Middle school was rough and really pushed that dark skin was not beautiful. By high school, I did research on colorism and it changed my life ever since. Education is key. A lot of us play on colorism without even knowing.

[@purplelove010]

Exactly I always considered myself darkskin. I think it's ridiculous to put me in the brown skin category because I would have to be a little bit lighter to be in that category. I don't understand how people see Megan as brown-skinned instead of dark skinned.

[@shanicebrown7681]

I am from Jamaica 🇯🇲 you are brown or black but you Are mostly treated Better in my country if you are Rich or coming from a wealthy family.

[@gloriaogara]

but actually being brown skin (i hate these labels) is hard asf, i'm pale asf in the winter but in summer i'm definately very dark! it's so subjective and it just divides the black diaspora also, coming from my personal experience as a afro european

[@kitvaneceon7568]

exactly same, we can live in both spaces depending on the season, my skin tone changes by like five or six shades. It's the same with me. Winter, I look almost lightskin, Summer I look darksin. These labels are hella subjective. Skin color changes!

[@praisesade]

Exactly I mean yes I love being darkskin but id rather just be seen as just a black person instead of these labels separating us, people in Nigeria when I traveled called me brown girl or black it was annoying 😐 btw( yellow means lightskin, brown mean brownskin, black means darkskin)

[@tsuyuasui7297]

@@praisesade OMG, those nigeria. terms sound similar to the terms we use in my country, “clair” means lightskinned, “cafe” means brownskinned and “noir” means darkskinned ( basically the french version)

[@SirEdigarious]

How in the hell are y’all changing colors like chameleons!? My sister gets darker in the summer too, and for the life of me I can’t figure out how or why. We’re from the same family, so why don’t I have magic powers?😩😩😩

[@mauve3734]

Yes ! When I get tanned it is evident 😭

[@missdaliesh]

India Arie has a song called "Brown Skin," which, for my generation, was a love for brown skin overall. It also highlighted black love, which can be a whole other conversation. I've always considered myself middle ground brown, since I didn't have to deal with the difficulties of being dark skin, nor the criticism that comes with being light skin. It was a way for me to not trivialize their experiences within the black community. I've never considered it as a way to distance myself from blackness.

[@roots4140]

Middle ground brown. Nice.

[@gilliangiles7773]

Now I'm getting confused because I would consider Beyoncé light skinned and like myself?

[@DefineMorena]

These days I'm hearing people call Beyonce brown skin, which she definitely isn't 🤔

[@Empowered_individual]

I think I'm brown skinned but some ppl think I'm light skinned. I guess it depends on who's judging. Back in the day i would be considered light skinned by "brown paper bag judgement"

[@troy511]

one person i can say looks brown skinned sometimes is Aaliyah. but Beyoncè to me is light skinned.

[@lunron9548]

@@DefineMorena Sometimes Beyoncé darkens her skin so I can see why people would call her brown but no, she’s definitely naturally light.

[@sarebear7777]

Exactly

[@melanatedintelligence6977]

Thank you for this conversation!!!! As woman who also identifies as a Dark Skin woman, I love that this Conversation has started

[@venus9727]

This whole conversation is so weird to me, the term brown skin has been around for a while and it was never an issue. I honestly saw on Twitter that it was a discussion happening because light skin black women were calling themselves brown skin and people calling them out and then it shifted to women who called themselves brown skin because they saw themselves in the middle but now it’s because some hate their skin?? Especially since a lot of brown skin women were for dark skin and it honestly feels like certain people want to create a deeper divide in the black community

[@applecat8934]

I'm Southeast Asian and it took me years to openly say that I'm Brown. Mostly because politicians and media convinced me that I was invisible until I saw a rise in Asian Americans identifying as brown and fighting against colorism in our communities. This conversation is so important to have - I'm much lighter complexion (like usually a medium beige in makeup) but in the summer I am straight up brown skin and the way I get treated by family members is just ridiculous, constantly told to cover up - even when I went to Asia and the men would say how disappointed my mother would be that I didn't cover my face with a scarf. I'm aware that for Asians this is a separate conversation but I wish more people talked about it..

[@theeladyj]

wow this wild

[@MickeyAndMore]

This has nothing to do with Asian people. Brown is just a fictional race. Brown skin is a term used in the black community.

[@applecat8934]

@@MickeyAndMore Brown is also used among Asians (Indians, Filipinos, Cambodians, and more). I also didn't know that until a few years ago.

[@nobetawedielikemysanity]

@@MickeyAndMore were you dropped on the head when you were a baby?

[@sabiha.sayeed]

@@MickeyAndMore Brown skin is a term also used by Asians and has been used by Asians for a long time. You can't erase that to fit your narrative. And it's not a race. It's literally the colour of our skin.

[@MissMK3473]

I’m a mixed woman with light skin and curly hair. You’d think I wouldn’t struggle with accepting myself bc I fit the “standard of beauty” in the black community. That’s so far from the truth tho. Eurocentric beauty standards have done a number on every poc from every ethnic background.

[@sexysass9223]

Excellent comment. It really caught my attention when you said "the standard of beauty in the black community". Believe it or not, I didn't consider the fact that there's a standard being held in the black community, I know most black people made statements alluding to what is prettier, but it never struck me as being the same as when other ethnicities would highlight what their standards for beauty are within their communities. I wonder do other ethnicities hold us black people with the same standards as some black people hold for each other? My hunch is whispering No.

[@cookiecapri5981]

I never considered light skin as the beauty standard in the black community but ok😉 Nonetheless, everyone should love themselves as they are.

[@adrianflo6481]

Same, sister. same.

[@theonef570]

Its not exactly far from the truth. Light skinned Black women such as yourself are still the beauty standard in the black community only . Most of the dark skin and brown skin Black men have a fetish for light skin Black women as you have the features of a Black person but just lighter skinned. The Black man would still prefer the light skinned Black women over White women or other light skinned women from other races. However you will not be seen as attractive or fit the beauty standards of other non Black races even the races that are dark skinned. For example a light skinned Black women would still not be seen as attractive in Latino, South Asian or East Asian communities because the hair and features do not match the beauty standards.

[@adrianflo6481]

Do you think me as a blond and green eyed man in central europe is walking around being happy about myself? Heres a life lesson, life is shit, it only gets worse from the day youre born. Everyone hates themselves, you worry about everything. then you get diagnosed with some neurological shit you didnt ask for. the meds never work and then you read online that apparently all is good because you look european. Imaging equating the experience of life to eurocentrisim.

[@ChiChi-ul9be]

Awww at 2:55 when you said "the closer to white you are, the more pretty your are", I could hear the emotion in your voice. You're beautiful girl!!

[@ChristinaKaeLove]

Tik tok is weird and mad toxic 🥴 how about we just call ourselves what skin tone we best believe we are and keep it moving

[@samiasegero5484]

right 🤦🏾‍♀️ 😂

[@shay529]

No because some people are delusional

[@marvelchild7]

Well said girl

[@adrianflo6481]

How about not caring about skin colour at all? Culture is literally the only thing i notice. When a black person talks perfect swedish my brain doesnt even notice their skin colour. But maybe thats just me not being racist.

[@anawkwardsweetpotato4728]

I can't stand TikTok. We are BLACK, whatever shade we are. We love our lightskin folx, we love our darkskin folx, and we love our brownskin folx all the same! Nobody can control our narrative of self-expression and love: No white person, nor Asian, nor brown. Our community the black community is still in bondage by the non-black train of thought. We must free ourselves because no one else can! ❤

[@klaraluna5861]

as a kid i love swimming in summer/vecation just like any other kids , but after every time i go swimming i ask my mom to buy me whitening lotions because i don't want to get darker ,here in philippines some people think lighter skin is beautiful as a kid i believed that but now i don't want to stay indoor so much cuz i will look like a white radish or a raw peeled potato , just want to say you shouldn't believed negative opinion about beauty standards, your beautiful with than skin that hair and that size. Love ya'll

[@aimemaggie]

I find it interesting that light skinned and brow skin are closer in tone then brown skinned and dark skinned.

[@ladydelight2289]

Because theres no such thing as brown skin. Its a darker spectrum of lightskin and a weaponised term to dissociate from dark skin

[@ClaimedQT]

@@ladydelight2289 couldn't have said it better

[@jasminepearls1047]

@@ladydelight2289 No, there is always a middle. There are people in the middle and if it wasn't real American media would not choose brown skin women like Brandy, Queen Latifah, Taraji, Nia Long over women who look like Lupita. The dark skin women are typically not that dark.

[@purplelove010]

@@ladydelight2289 exactly I consider my darkskin not brown skin

[@jadacampbell9331]

@@ladydelight2289 then you could just argue it's a lighter spectrum of dark skin

[@khaffibeckles3151]

Brown skin and dark skin are super common in the Caribbean. I’m from 🇹🇹 and it’s been interesting to see it begin to transfer over.

[@sarahdight1341]

No they not

[@PhDiva02]

Its not transferring over from the caribbean. Brownskin has always been used in the black community. These young folks just think they silly enough to think they invented everything. Lol

[@lk-xr3hq]

These labels reduce people to their skin color. I understand that this is what the system does, but hearing people refer to others as "these brown skins" is unsettling.

[@HeyItsShey]

I find this so interesting because I've been called different things, depending on who I'm around. I understand that some people heavily invest in the lightskin, brownskin, and darkskin labels but I never did - simply because I could never get a consistent answer 😅

[@ExoticalsUnited]

exactly. i dont care how people label me. how i see myself is whats most important.

[@HealingMariah]

I’m dark Skinned and I still don’t go around talking about it irl... I wish that the labels just didn’t matter. Either way I’ve always been dark skinned no doubt about it.

[@MsMarzili]

in europe "brown skinned" is usually used to (self-) identify asian and middle eastern communities, like people from pakistan or sri lanka

[@griizzy]

Bey and Nicki are definitely LIGHT SKIN in the Black community. Light skin is not a term usually used for biracial people (which all of the women you showed were) . Megan is a brown skinned girl several shades darker than them, I feel like you definitely didn't fully understand the assignment. Rihanna and Beyonce are the light skinned black women.

[@ashantiscoot]

Nicki is brown skin as well. Even her ex Meek called her brown skin. She was wearing lighter makeup but lately it seems shes been embracing her natural skin color.

[@TheJulieeaa]

beyoncé and nicki are mixed

[@ashantiscoot]

@@TheJulieeaa What does being "mixed" have to do with skin color

[@thelivingroom6172]

She read an article... rihanna is not considered light skinned but beyonce and nikki are light skin to some ..... they are also mixed with African. Nikki is mixed with Indian and beyonces mother is biracial.... Beyonce also does not consider herself as being light skinned hence her song...brown skin girl... she understands that we are not better than each other and are different shades of brown. Nikki is brown albeit lighter shade of brown...in Trinidad we call it red skin. Everybody is considered light skin to someone darker than them... this whole colorism thing is a problem.

[@mi834]

@@thelivingroom6172 funny because Rihanna is lighter than Beyoncé and Nicki, she’s also ‘mixed’.

[@Gross126]

Brown skinned privelage exists because we’re kinda allowed to just coast. Dark skinned and light skinned black people are constantly being attacked. Brown skinned people don’t really have to deal with either. So we get to coast. So it’s unfair for me to say I’m dark skinned when I have extremely dark friends who have different battles than I do.

[@rutendo2939]

I don't think the word coast id appropriate here. Mainly because brown skin people still do face many challenges but your experience may differ from another brown skinned person

[@Gross126]

@@rutendo2939 we experience racism. But I can say I’ve never really experienced colorism when I’m my skin tone. People have maybe been like “why are you so dark?” During the summer or “damn you light af today” during the winter but that’s about it. But that’s also helped me figure out who in my circle is a colorist.

[@israeliana]

@@Gross126 try moving to a place where there are many self hating Black

[@SirEdigarious]

This☝🏽☝🏽☝🏽 The darkskin kids in my school would be treated quite badly. They were mostly from the large Kenyan immigration we had a few years back. The kids would be friends with them to their face but talk mad trash behind their back. Asking each other if they brought bush meat for lunch, or how their clothes were tacky. I remember being in the bathroom and the one of the them in a group if brown girls asked if it was ok to say those things in front of me (who was washing my hands to the side) They took a look at me and said something like, “Oh lightskins are all colorist, it’s fine”😭😭😭😭 Over the years I’ve heard some shit been said because most brown girls think we are all colorist pick me’s😂

[@dijonay971]

@@SirEdigarious LOL that's terrible.

[@seonology]

your confusion on the brown skin topic, thinking it’s new, and it’s classifications can be excused by your lack of growing up around black people. i’ve only ever heard this conversation around people who have. and your view on it is so interesting and kind of highlights that meaning and classification aren’t universal even within the same racial spectrum. i won’t lie it kind of frustrates because someone who grew up within the community would have better nuance on this conversation. adding better context and examples. but i understand this is fairly new to you. it was something i thought was universal. silly of me to think something manmade and a tool of oppression would automatically be universal.

[@amandas1183]

I’m in my mid-twenties and I thought this was a universal thing as well. I grew up in predominantly white spaces and was still connected in Black spaces so I learned very quickly. Even some white kids knew the terminologies based on what they were exposed to. I think the Tik Tok generation needs to take a back seat at times . They create dissertations like they just discovered something new. Like at the end of the day, there are Black people who have a light skinned complexion, brown complexion or deeper/dark complexion. And we’re all Black.

[@plantbasedheaux]

it’s interesting bc I also grew up in white spaces and never heard of “brownskin” until I moved to Texas a few years ago. but my understanding of the color spectrum and colorism still differs from her’s greatly. I made a similar video and would love to know what you think!

[@ninagolgi3132]

As soon as you described biracial women as light skin and Beyonce as brown skin I checked out. The erasure is real.

[@ninagolgi3132]

@@sophia.s The erasure started a long time ago, light skin women are just now starting to see themselves move on the "color scale of acknowledgment". Actual dark skin women have been erased, almost as if the deepest color is an anomaly that no longer deserves to be seen at all.

[@oh.kaylahh]

Thanks for articulating this so well Amanda! This has been a recent conversation for myself and friends from Undergrad who are all black, but came from different backgrounds so our understandings of this were different. Until I moved into a school system that was still predominantly white, but had a growing population of black and brown students, I wasn’t even aware that I was a) dark skin and b) that being so held some type of significance. My middle school years were definitely traumatizing as I grappled with both feeling unattractive in a white space for being black and then being made to feel even more unattractive from my black peers for being dark skin. On the other hand, I have a friend who is about your complexion and also internally (and once externally to myself and another ‘dark skin’ friend) identified as dark skin. She went to a basically all-black school and said that they simply never bothered with the labels like that. So she also didn’t know the classification of “brown-skinned” existed in that sense. A question we came up with at the end of this conversation was: is the colorism and ousting of darker skinned people amongst black people more pervasive in spaces where we are not the majority? I know your experience was different and nothing is monolithic, but I wanted to hear other people’s opinions. I have so many experiences with this conversation, especially the use of “brown-skinned” as a way to distance oneself from being dark skinned (friends explicitly saying “I’m not dark like you...I’m brown-skinned”) and how those things negatively affected my self-esteem. I’m very happy we are at least acknowledging it now.

[@SpongeMixify]

man, i'm glad i'm not on tiktok lol. i've always considered myself darkskin, while my sister is more brownskin. However depending on how people view you, you can be either/or. I've seen people darker than me and people lighter than me, tbh there are so many different shades. it's sad that we still continue to divide ourselves. but i'm glad you made this video and brought it to everyone's attention.

[@Kelly99844]

I've always had crises over my skin tone. People used to call me lightskin growing up but I wasn't really. Society made me view lighter as more desirable so I was always subconscious about looking darker, esp in the summer because I get DARK from the sun. I used to spend hours researching skin lightening products. I remember saying something to my friend once about me being lightskin and he said "You're not really lightskin though." That comment has literally been haunting me for years lmao. It's taken me so long to just be okay with being brownskin. Colorism is horrible.

[@rachellenoir2072]

As a white woman who didn’t know any people of any color other than white most of my life (grew up way up north near the Canadian border in a very small town) these conversations that I’ve now been made aware of in the last 4 years have been so eye opening as to the problems and issues at hand. I know that this video in particular wasn’t meant for me or people like me, I still appreciate hearing about these issues to further try to understand what is actually happening and the full implications of white supremacy. Thank you for your honesty and bravery.

[@rosedalinevaletine6931]

What do you mean by people of color? Do you mean Black people? If so, please refer to us as Black people. There’s no shame with the label-at least on my part.

[@Summersnoww]

These videos are in fact meant for you because this is how we all evolve as people this is not just a discussion that should be held with only black people, you making yourself more aware will help you understand the perspectives of others. As you may never live through it at least you will have some type of respect for someone who has because you understand! I love it !

[@INAN2222]

❤️

[@shay529]

@@rosedalinevaletine6931 these topic affect Asian culture also not just black

[@purplelove010]

White people come in different shades too. I wonder why you guys don't have these discussions.

[@raspberryheadache9897]

As a black African , this whole concept of "brownskin" feels very foreign to me. Thanks for making this video and shedding light on this issue! It's disheartening to see the different extents that black people, worldwide, go to just to be acceptable according to eurocentric beauty standards :(

[@zanelehadebe6661]

Exactly. As an African myself brownskin is just not a thing. You're either lightskin or darkskin. And the difference shades that come with that are what we embrace.

[@theimplications635]

@Zanele Hadebe Exactly like "brownskin" is still dark or light lol. They're always gonna be people a little darker or lighter than you, that doesn't make you not light or dark skin. That would just mean most Black people are "brownskin".

[@missfefeloves]

I'm african and brown skin is definitely a thing. I remember back then people used to call beownskins lightskin back in the day

[@steph4652]

Yeah I don't get it, because every black person has brown skin (just different shades).

[@tsuyuasui7297]

@@zanelehadebe6661 erm no...imma have go disagree i’m african myself and brownskin BEEN a thing for decadesssss now.

[@ksheonnacampbell4401]

This is an interesting conversation. I’ve always classified myself as brown skin for the simple fact that I’ve found myself to be neither dark enough or light enough. And people haven’t classified me as either. Plus the whole dark skin vs light skin thing got on my nerves. It was never a self hate thing for me and it was a term I’ve heard all the time growing up. I’ve never heard of brown skin “privilege” either. I don’t look white passing or light skin or mixed and have never been treated better than others because of my skin. At least not to my knowledge. To me, brown skin has always just been a broad spectrum of people who feel like they can’t fit in either category of light or dark.

[@fuel4luv28]

Growing up I was always considered "medium" brown skinned, not dark or light skinned and sometimes either depending on who you ask. I was always just happy not to be a part of the dark skinned versus light skinned conversations because I considered myself smack dab in the middle. But the more I see these issues of colorism and ignorance...it has made me want to pick a side, which is also foolish. It's a distraction that we have latched onto and I'll be glad when we let it go.

[@JemimasOutcome]

Labelling shades is helpful to get the right makeup. I think we all fall under #blackgirlmagic because that was such a powerful inclusive movement. Apart from that I don't like to categorise myself as a certain shade especially because skin tones change constantly depending on age, weather and more :)

[@ExoticalsUnited]

exactly!

[@frumpusnumpus]

Bless you!! It gets tiring. Like are we having a discussion because there is a problem to solve, or are we creating problems then gathering data to support the existence of the problem?

[@squidanimegirl2k1]

I totally agree because when I started buying my make up online, I had to research my skin tone just to make sure that I didn't waste money. I usually made the mistake of getting makeup that was too dark and made me look dull or makeup that was too light and made me look ashy.

[@JemimasOutcome]

@@MayMay-el4wg no you are wrong, it was started by Cashawn Thompson

[@lxvendera]

honestly when it comes to labels in the black community, its so hard to classify people because of how how diverse our appearances and experiences can be! like how ur perceived can vary depending on ur environment, features, etc so I try to avoid labeling myself or other people where its not obvious😭 also that's interesting how new the classification is for some ppl bc i've heard the term my whole life. but thank u for making this video! i love hearing ur take or analysis on topics

[@alessandradasilva3290]

I love that we are finally having these convos . They really bring light to a lot of concepts that we as a society don't need anymore .

[@williamrutherford553]

I think you brought up an interesting point with those two competing ideas about "dark skin". You avoid it because you're worried people will judge you for using the label while not having faced certain hardships. But on the other hand when people use another term like brownskin, suddenly the argument is they're trying to distance themselves from dark skinned people, creating a hierarchy. Both cannot be true, either you want people to identify as dark skinned to show the range of "dark" colours, or the term shouldn't be used due to people's assumptions about the discrimination it entails.

[@blackprotagonist]

Beyoncé is considered light-skinned, or at least she has been my entire life within the Black community. In fact, women and men my shade and above are commonly considered lightskinned, even if we’re not, say, Yara Shahidi’s shade. Moreover, “lightskinned” was also most often used for Black people with two Black parents. You’d sooner hear Zendaya, Yara Shahidi, or Amandla referred to as “mixed” before “lightskinned,” even though they’re both. “You see that mixed lightskin over there?” “Brownskinned” was also in popular use growing up for me as well in the Black community. It was absolutely wild to me to hear it become a “debate” on Tiktok. I noticed that people who seem to have grown up outside of the Black community seemed more prone to categorize themselves as darker than they’d actually be in the Black community.

[@tynnettam9636]

Beyonce has always been considered light-skinned in the black community. The term "brownskinned" has always been a thing within the black community. I think non-black people and black people who did not grow up around black people think "brownskinned" is a new term.

[@blackprotagonist]

@@tynnettam9636 I 100 percent agree.

[@blessyourheart175]

Beyoncé is definitely light skinned, on the darker end of the light skin spectrum. Her mother is light skin on the other end of the spectrum.

[@amandaw5022]

Yara and Zendaya are not light skinned

[@blackprotagonist]

@@amandaw5022 You can be mixed and darkskinned with kinky hair, so saying someone alone is “mixed” isn’t an indicator of how they look, even though women like Zendaya are clearly racially ambiguous. There are plenty of fully Black lightskinned girls that look similar to, if not just like Yara. I agree that “lightskinned” IS meant to be for a fully Black person with two Black parents, but I’m not going to automatically know a person’s parentage just by looking at them.

[@MONET8iAM]

I was born in the mid 90s. So growing up, it was common to hear the term “brownskin” being used. It’s all subjective(sometimes due to undertones), but you’d have women like Megan Good, and Nia Long be considered brownskin, and women like Naomi Campbell, Kelly Rowland, and Tichina Arnold considered darksin. I personally consider Whitney Houston brownskin (look at her next to Bobby) and Beyonce lightskin (look at her no makeup photos), and Kelly to Lupita, to Duckie Thot darksin (more chocolate toned). Again it’s all subjective as it derives from the construct of race, but there is clearly a spectrum where in-betweens exist.

[@AlatOnDemand]

I looked at the title and I was like “omggg why is this even a thing?”

[@sarahdight1341]

Y u say that

[@AlatOnDemand]

@@sarahdight1341 Colorism in general shouldn’t be a thing but I’m saying there’s absolutely no reason for us to have division among ourselves (darkskins and brownskins) we all black.

[@brownskinbunny3722]

I’m ok with being in the middle but I’ve used this term to describe myself for over 10 years .

[@ep1csw4g]

Personally, I appreciate the creation of 'Brown skin' because I truly fall in between the two. I self-identified as darkskinned despite always hearing "you're right in between dark and lightskinned to me," or "you're too dark to be lightskinned and too light to be darkskinned." The creation of this label truly encompasses who I am, and I no longer feel othered.

[@MickeyAndMore]

This term has been around for a long time in the black community. It wasn’t just “created”.

[@ep1csw4g]

@@MickeyAndMore I realize that however it just most recently regained popularity

[@gemi96377]

@@ep1csw4g But it's been widely used in Black communities throughout the diaspora for decades. I'm in my mid 40s and I grew up hearing it. It seems that a number of mostly younger people are just "discovering" it so they think it's new or uncommon.

[@username01675]

I never liked the term "lighskin" or even "dark skin " to me we should all call ourselves brown, dark brown or light brown.... it's less of a stigma.

[@username01675]

@@metwix and its the "light" for me like your an angel or something

[@chaiboix]

@@username01675 frfr

[@chaiboix]

you on to sm

[@nesadcruz7840]

Many Asians are brown skinned too so Its relative. Asians who pass the “ brown paper bag” test would still be considered dark

[@blacksheepsleep2951]

My only issue is that brownskin people do Change colors throughout the year so it’s kind of Annoying going through life having people tell you what you are. If it’s winter I’m very light and in the summer I’m very dark so I’m going to go by what I am at the time, but anytime I do I get told I’m self hating 😑. Like wtf I’m not just one color all year and I’m not going to say I’m light or dark but then I say I’m brownskin and told that’s not a thing like I’m over it fr.

[@PlinniBundaCake]

Lmao! When winter fully hits I always say, "Oop! My winter coat is here." And when summer hits, "Oop! That summer coat is here and poppin." And they both take me by surprise every time. All that say, as a brown skinned person ((honestly, melaniated being, first and foremost)) I feel what you're saying. I also gotta have fun with it.

[@blacksheepsleep2951]

@@PlinniBundaCake lol those are good ones I just say “it’s morphing time” when I notice my color change. But yea you’re right have to have fun with it and just remember we’re all black and it should t be this deep 😂

[@imthebossmermaid3648]

Same here!

[@tammerry9496]

I agree. Im going through the samething.

[@MyOhMy050]

I’ve never heard anybody call Beyonce brown skinned. Black people always say she’s light skinned.

[@shaniyaodulawa5875]

This is an interesting conversation that you as an American didnt really use brown skin. I’m in London, England and we’ve always used light skin brown skin and dark skin

[@athenar4186]

We use it in the UK because of the Caribbean influences. It’s always been a phrase in the Caribbean.

[@shaniyaodulawa5875]

@@athenar4186 makes sense! a lot of our slang is also influenced by patois

[@objectoriented3049]

What do you personally identify as?

[@shaniyaodulawa5875]

@@objectoriented3049 I I identify as dark skin

[@iamsol4916]

But We do actually, I’m thinking it’s Gen Z that doesn’t 🤔 because in America we’ve always had the distinction. While brown skin is often left out of the conversation , it definitely isn’t a new coined term. So I’m surprised by that notion. Nia long, Regina hall, Megan Good in the 90s,Kyla Pratt were all Brown skin women/girls I identified with.

[@simphiwemkhatshwa8862]

You are absolutely correct about that 'right features' chat

[@Gross126]

I’ve always considered Beyoncé and Nicki light skinned

[@rileytown7687]

generally they are. the source she used just disagrees. but yes they are considered light

[@jazz-axy9924]

You know conversation I'm still waiting to go mainstream? The fact that alotta black ppl aren't one flat shade. Faces, arms, chests, legs be TOTALLY different colors.

[@Kjstyles4317]

thisssssssss!!! Some parts of my body are darkskin and some parts like my arms, face & legs are brown skin or even lightskin. So whenever I call myself darkskin due to the parts I see of myself that are darkskin people look at my visible body partys (like face and arms) and say “no your brown”. In Reality I say whatever color that I have that’s darker on my body is what I identify as. I don’t experience what most darkskins go through but I rather say I’m darkskin because why not? Even though I was brown when born I just feel like “brownskin” is an unnecessary label used to cause more division.

[@LovinCosmetics]

Yessssss

[@Coco_xoxo]

Omg yesssss, my face is literally so much lighter and so are the undersides of my arms, then my legs are darker. It’s like so confusing 😂😂😂. And the fact that our terms of skin tone categorizing will probably vastly differ when we go to different regions and countries. Like you could lightskinned in the south but brown skin up north.

[@iam.andani]

Ummmm. Beyonce and Nicki minaj are LIGHTSKIN and Megan Thee Stallion is on the darker side of darkskin /lighter side of darkskin in other words brown skin

[@butterfliesandwaffles6335]

Did you mean darker side of lightskin? Sorry not trying to come for you if it’s an honest mistake I’m just a bit slow 💀

[@ExoticalsUnited]

yes! beyonce and nicki minaj are definitley light skinned

[@i_Ambrose]

@Ryuzaki this right here

[@praisesade]

🤦🏾‍♀️girl Beyoncé and Nicki Minaj ARE BROWNSKIN they are just apart of the lighter shade of brownskin y’all need to be looking at their pictures cause y’all must be blind if you look at nicki she sometimes appears lightskin or really darks but she is brownskin same with Beyoncé.🤦🏾‍♀️

[@praisesade]

@Mia Pratt my point exactly and people tryna say nicki lightskinned no she isn’t yall must not look at her old pictures or some of her pictures cause she can appear the same skin as Megan sometimes but she’s truly brownskin.

[@KryKry-yw6wb]

I'm almost 30 and I've heard people using brown skinned to describe people since I was small. When I use it I just use it to help describe people. Especially when trying to describe a black person to another black person. But idk it's not that deep to me personally but I get the argument as a whole.

[@solarmoth4628]

This video made me realize I’ve never really been around enough black people to experience colorism. I’ve always been the darkest person or closer to the darkest in the room because i’ve always been in predominantly white spaces. I’ve always identified as dark skin. but now I realize people might consider me to be brown skin? I’m in between the two I guess? I honestly don’t find brown skin a helpful classification because it’s so subjective. None of my features really would allow me to benefit from being brown skin in the first place. I definitely believe featurism is a big part of who gets to take part in that privilege.

[@sisis-qt4oc]

same im black but i never experienced colorism, only racism. I guess it could be because I grew up in a predominantly white area??

[@ChynaSterling-sx7ez]

Brownskin is not a new term I’m 21 years old and I’ve been called brownskin my whole life

[@saraha.1336]

BROWN SKIN WAS ALWAYS A THING. beyonce didn't start the "trend". i was always call brown skin and I'm in my 20s. the brown skin people just weren't bullied for being too dark or praised for being light and therefore didn't get into the drama

[@saraha.1336]

@Blessing some people do and it's annoying

[@puppyprincess2822]

Thank you! All these "new" colorism terms been here. Ive watched Africans with darkskin be ridicule for being dark.

[@amandas1183]

@@puppyprincess2822 the Tik Tok generation really thinks they discovered something new smh.

[@puppyprincess2822]

@@amandas1183 Exactly. They think everything is new lol. Same with 90s r&b llol

[@samiasegero5484]

right im even 14 way younger than u are and have been saying im brownskin

[@briellelove7082]

i think you gotta switch lupita with megan in the thumbnail lol

[@amandamaryanna]

fixed!

[@rebeckas6503]

As someone who identifies as a dark skinned south asian this was so interesting to watch, and was very well structured and so informative!