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Taylor-Elizabeth Peart

Professor Trent M. Kays

ENG 102-06-S17

4 May 2017

The Societal Acceptance of Skin Bleaching in the Caribbean

Across the Caribbean, islands are populated with not only a plethora of exquisite flora

and fauna, but beautiful people as well. The Caribbean is a melting pot of cultures in one place,

similar to New York City. Most Caribbean people are not pureblood natives, which is defined as

ultimately descending directly from the Taino and Arawak peoples. Instead they are mixed with

Asian, South American and European blood as well. Due to this melange of culture, Caribbean

citizens range in skin color from pale alabaster to deep ebony. Interestingly enough, scattered

among the advertisements for Milomalt chocolate powder, island cell phone providers, and

tourism, there is a smattering of advertisements for skin bleaching. These advertisements

typically feature a woman with brown skin in the before picture looking unhappy, and in the after

picture a woman with tan or pale skin smiling into the camera. Growing up and visiting my

family home in Jamaica, I never understood the appeal and fascination that citizens of Caribbean

countries had with lightening their skin in order to attain European features. As I grew older I

came to realize, after learning more about many Caribbean countries histories, remnants of

colonialism still exist. We, as a people, are now governed by those who look like us, but we still

are kept under the bondage of the caste system even in 2017. But ultimately, why is skin

bleaching an acceptable part of Caribbean societys beauty regimen? After extensive research, I
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have concluded that skin bleaching is an acceptable part of the Caribbean beauty regimen due to

the history of European colonialism on the island, which ultimately stems from the days of the

plantation system.

In the late 1400s, European powers began to expand their respective countries power by

colonising throughout the Caribbean. At first it was primarily the Spanish and Portuguese

colonising Caribbean countries, namely the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Jamaica. These

countries primarily capitalized on the sugar cane that was in abundance on these islands, which

led then to a booming rum industry. After becoming acquainted with the native people, these

settlers attempted to ultimately take control of native lands, which lead to many revolts and

massacres. This decimated a part of the native population, and along with African slaves were

enslaved to work on the sugar and rum plantations. Beginning in the 1600s, the British empire

became a key piece of the Caribbean slave trade. With a change in governmental rule for many

islands, such as Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Barbados, new systems were put in place.

Many of these systems were plantation system based. The Caribbean plantation system was very

similar to the North American plantation system. In the Caribbean plantation system, those of

lighter skin complexions were kept in the house to cater to the household, and some to

supplement the masters sexual needs. Alternatively, slaves who were confined to the sugar fields

and rum distilleries were usually of a darker skin complexion. In addition to the lighter skinned

slaves being kept in the house at the disposal of their masters, a third group of intermediates

were formed composed of mulattoes, or mixed race people. Across the Caribbean, this third

group took priority among all three groups of Africans as result of their European descent,

followed by lighter skinned Africans, and lastly in the ranks were dark skinned Africans.
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Unfortunately, since the end of slavery this system of colorism or caste still remains, although

not as outright.

In post-colonial Caribbean society, the color of a persons skin determined their

socioeconomic status. In the book, Race and Class in the Post-Emancipation Caribbean by

Raymond T. Smith, the author discusses the topic of economic placement in the post-colonial

Caribbean:

One can make a convincing case that social stratification in the Caribbean grew

directly out of the calculated self-interest of an economically and politically dominant c

lass of unscrupulous planters and merchants. There is a much evidence that the dominant

class joined with missionaries and administrators to try and transform the ex-slaves into a

stable, obedient, docile, and hard-working class of wage-labourers; that is, to try and

preserve the basic structure of relations of production by deploying ideological, rather

than physical means of coercion. (Smith 1).

Smith discusses the status of racism and classism within a typical, independent Caribbean

country. He argues that post slavery ideologies stressed individual achievement as the basis of

social status, but that would soon be forgotten. These liberal ideologies would soon be replaced

with the idea of financial status and the color of ones skin makes an individual successful. Smith

traces these beliefs back to the planter and merchant class of the slavery period, who emulated

these standards, which lead the newly freed slaves to continue in their beliefs. Even in the

modern day, this a large majority of Caribbean peoples mindsets, due to this perpetuated belief

that the color of your skin measures your societal and financial worth.

The research question posed in the beginning of this research essay was: Why is skin

bleaching an acceptable part of Caribbean societys beauty regimen? In Caribbean society, there
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is still an underlying caste to be broken due to colonialisms mark on the Caribbean. Research

has been done by the Presbyterian Church, that highlights discrimination particularly towards

Caribbean people of African descent. This indirect discrimination is based on skin color, poverty,

and who has control of financial resources in English-speaking Caribbean countries. Most people

in power in Caribbean society such as, heads of government, corporation CEOs, and television

personalities tend to be of a lighter complexion. Power and prestige is equal to monetary wealth,

so those of fairer complexion has claim to most of a countrys wealth. Due to this the average

poor Caribbean citizen of a deeper complexion sees the representation of power and prestige,

which ultimately leads to bleaching. The correlation is natural, as it has been a part of Caribbean

society since the time of slavery. Simply, society has deemed possessing lighter skin and

Eurocentric features as a ticket to a better life, so many Caribbean citizens bleach their skin,

which ultimately destroys the melanin that is so vital, doing more harm than good.

In closing, the modern day Caribbean is filled with naturally beautiful people. The

colonisation of many Caribbean countries, left the descendants of those who were directly

impacted in a vicious cycle of caste, which ultimately dictates their life. Skin bleaching is seen as

societally acceptable to darker skinned people, since those who are run their homes and are in

power are majority light skinned. This practice is detrimental to the health of those who partake,

but many put status above health on their priority list, a reminder of slavery. Governments have

warned against the dangers of skin bleaching by providing funding to educate their citizens about

its dangers, but it is still a popular part of the Caribbean beauty routine. Ultimately, in the next 50

years, there is hope that this practice will be eradicated as more citizens become educated on

their history and culture.

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Works Cited

Premdas, Ralph R. Ethnicity and Identity in the Caribbean: Decentering a Myth. Notre Dame, :

Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies, 1996. Kellogg Institute. Kellogg

Insititue. Web. 2 May. 2017.

"Racism Persists in English-speaking Caribbean." Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Presbyterian

Church (U.S.A.), n.d. Web. 2 May. 2017.

Townsend, Mark. "Mark Townsend: The New Colour of British Racism." The Observer.

Guardian News and Media, 29 Oct. 2005. Web. 2 May. 2017.

Blanding, Michael. "Different Kinds of Black." Tufts Magazine / Winter 2014. Tufts Magazine,

n.d. Web. 2 May. 2017.

Smith, Raymond T. Race and Class in the Post-Emancipation Caribbean. The

Hague/Boston/London: Martinus Nijhoff, 1982. Print