Skin tone bias emerges among a variety of racial and ethnic groups around the world. In these societies lighter skin has been and continues to be valued over darker skin with multiple consequences for social, economic, and physical health outcomes. Jill Walker Rettberg, author of “Seeing Ourselves Through Technology”, focuses on the dehumanization of people with an emphasis on skin tone bias. “People with darker skin tones rarely saw good or natural photographic images of themselves.” Which had a simple solution, “…calibrating film to suit darker skin better” but instead took a different turn and was almost completely ignored which set off a domino effect that would only cause a world of hurt. Just as Rettberg implied, I think skin tone bias is a problem that has and will continue to cause some serious repercussions.
On the topic of deep seated issues of colorism, a study done by professors at San Francisco State University made some heartbreaking discoveries. Notably, individuals perceived to possess higher levels of Afrocentric features (e.g., dark skin, full lips, wide nose, coarse hair) have been subject to increased negative stereotyping (e.g., alleging heightened levels of aggression), leading to real-world repercussions, such as receiving longer prison sentences for crimes equated for severity and priors.” Repercussions solely based off the color of skin seems ridiculous but it’s been seen time and again in this country.
A conversation has been sparked recently about the black wrongful conviction experience in the U.S. The conversation brought up a hashtag, #BlackBehindBars and the stories and reality are harsh. Troy Davis who fell victim to wrongful execution for the murder of a police officer. There were many attempts to save him but nonetheless, misidentification cost him his life. Davis said, “The struggle for justice doesn’t end with me. This struggle is for all the Troy Davises who came before me and all the ones who will come after me … I will not stop fighting until I’ve taken my last breath.” —Troy Davis, Executed by the State of Georgia on Sept. 21, 2011. There are many other unfortunate instances but one of the most famous is the story of how the system charged and ultimately failed five underaged boys: Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise — better known as the Central Park Five — for the assault and rape of a female investment banker. Netflix released a segment When They See Us and shed light on the abuse and unfairness they suffered.
We can’t continue to administer with the ideas and policies of past generations because a good number of them have failed us and will continue to fail us. Rettberg says, “Feeling misrepresented by the camera is one common reason for beginning to take selfies instead of being the subject of other people’s photographs” (Rettberg). That drive to separate the art from the artist or in this case the muse from the skin color can be achieved by learning and adjusting instead of “dehumanising” the person. With the results of the study showing that it’s almost second nature to assume that how well we retain information in our BRAIN can be tied to skin color by our brain is mind boggling. It’s something that’s been rooted deep in this country for decades, dating back to the times of oppression against minority groups who didn’t fit the status quo.
In conclusion, Filtered Reality (Chapter 2) of Seeing Ourselves Through Technology, the author Rettberg focuses on the different types of filters: literal, technological, cultural/cognitive and a few that fall in the combination category. She gave examples of each and touched on skin tone bias in photography and how Instagram filters follow the agenda. The skin tone bias falls in the combination category. Although she focused on photography with skin tone bias I thought about how that applies to other things in life. And after further research, I was stunned. I found many parallels with dehumanization and skin tone bias. As said previously, I think skin tone bias has had many effects on different aspects and spectrums but it’ll be hard to overcome a seed that was planted decades ago. At this point it’s branched out and grown but will you cut the leaves off or let it continue to grow?
“#BlackBehindBars: Sparking a Conversation on the Black Wrongful Conviction
Experience in the U.S.” Innocence Project, 6 Feb. 2019,www.innocenceproject.org/blackbehindbars-sparking-a-conversation-on-the-black-wrongful-conviction-experience-in-the-u-s/. Accessed 23 October 2019.
Organization. “Study Claims People Remember Educated Black Men As Lighter-Skinned.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 7 Dec. 2017, www.huffpost.com/entry/skin-tone-bias_n_4597924. Accessed 23 October 2019.
Rettberg, Jill Walker. link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2F9781137476661.pdf. Accessed 23 October 2019
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