Skin whitening
Dismissing the scandalous affair as a matter of skindeep politics and thick-skinned politicians is easy to do.
But by not probing the consequences of the reported use of glutathione drip in the Senate premises by the wife of a sitting senator, we’ll lose out on the politics involving the Filipino epidermis.
The scandal referred to here is, of course, the now-deleted Instagram post of model/ actress Mariel Padilla depicting herself receiving reportedly an intravenous skin whitening therapy (Mrs. Padilla claims she was getting Vitamin C) in the Senate office of her husband, Senator Robin Padilla.
At first glance, Mrs. Padilla innocently lactifying herself with a skin therapy not approved by the Food and Drug Administration shouldn’t merit a political connection, as dim Senator Padilla has amply protested.
But it is precisely this innocence that prompts political and social questions.
Dusky-toned Senator Nancy Binay, in fact, immediately saw the grave socio-political implications of the irksome business of skin whitening Mrs. Padilla seems to be endorsing.
“Whitening is not a basis for good looks.” “For me, we should always be comfortable with the
skin given to us, right?” “Everyone should always be comfortable with their skin.” “That’s where you’ll really gain confidence, in accepting who you really are,” were some disturbing points Binay raised in a radio interview about the Filipino’s widespread obsession with white skin.
Superficially,
Ms. Binay’s laments are traceable to the hurtful discrimination she may have often faced and received because of her dark skin color.
But beyond her sad personal experiences, Binay inadvertently pointed out a relevant political context: skin bleaching is a political act that its users and propagators are blissfully unaware of.
The individual act of skin bleaching is political since it lies at the heart of the widespread global concern known as “colorism.”
“Colorism,” as defined by the Harvard Kennedy School, “is the differential treatment of same-race individuals based on skin color.”
Aside from its various global iterations, in our context, “colorism” can simply be understood as Filipinos showing favoritism to Filipinos with lighter skin tones.
Filipinos, however, aren’t the only ones burdened with “colorism.” Colorism is a global cultural and social construct with its roots deeply embedded in the issues of racism and colonization.
In fact, the global practice of skin bleaching is predominantly understood by scholars to be an internalized legacy of colonialism and an embodiment of Western beauty ideals by the colonized.
Skin bleaching has its roots in colonialism since, as one study pointedly put it: “Lighter skin hearkens back to the days of the (colonial) aristocracy where tanned skin demonstrated one’s social class as a laborer; those with lighter skin were deemed more important because they didn’t have to labor in the sun thereby getting a tan.”
Dispensing with colonial legacies, of course, can be done. But many Filipinos still seem to have pathologically internalized such devious displays of class stratification and power relations as normal.
Recognizing such pathological conditions brought about by our historical circumstances, however, won’t be enough to eradicate hidden notions about the superiority of white skin.
For one, a multibillion-dollar industry profiting from the unhealthy stigmatization of dark skin is everywhere, with no signs of slowing down.
Pervasive, too, is skin whitening in our digital age that now isn’t just confined to skin creams, soaps, pills, and intravenous glutathione drips but is literally in our daily encounters with the virtual world.
For instance, on social media sites like Instagram and Snapchat, “beauty filters” are designed to make users look like white people by narrowing the nose or lightening the skin.
Yet, even more alarming about skin bleaching is the fact that most of its victimized users are paying no heed to how devastatingly unhealthy it all is. Skin whitening creams, for example, often contain high levels of mercury and have wideranging side effects.
In fact, an alarmed World Health Organization is insisting that skin bleaching be recognized as an urgent public health concern.
“Colorism is a global cultural and social construct with its roots deeply embedded in the issues of racism and colonization.
“But it is precisely this innocence that prompts political and social questions.