A Brighter Future!

These days we are seeing more prominent women in all skin shades and shapes. The role models for our young black girls are proud of who they are and where they come from. The message to young girls is to be great at being the best person they can be. Skin complexion does not define who we are as people. Entertainers like Janelle Monae encourage young girls to be free and love themselves as they are. Her song "Q. U.E.E.N. with Erykah Badu is a perfect example of women empowerment. Social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram allow celebrities to connect with their fans. They share their stories and experiences on social acceptance and struggles they had to overcome. 

A new event for women empowerment is the "Black Girls Rock" awards that honors African American women who are positively impacting their community and the world around them. 

Black women all around are coming together and uplifting one another for their uniqueness instead of tearing one another down for our differences. We see black women of all shades in Hollywood films, as political figures, educators, and so on. 

A great women is not defined by her looks, but by her character. Her beautiful skin is merely a compliment to her genuine heart. 

xoxo,

Elizabeth Toyin

Dark Girls Documentary

This summer Oprah premiered a powerful documentary about "Dark Girls". The documentary was pretty insightful on the many struggles of African American women and their acceptance in their own community based on their skin complexion. While the documentary was airing people took to their social networking outlets to give their input, per usual. For some the documentary was an eye opener for others it didn't do much but shed light on a topic we all know too well.

Have you seen the documentary? What was your reaction?

xoxo,

Elizabeth Toyin

Am I Light Enough: Skin Bleaching

In some countries and cultures "skin bleaching" is the norm. In places like India and Africa people bleach their skin in hopes of appearing lighter than they are naturally. In some cases having lighter skin may signify a higher status or considered to be more attractive.

I have had discussions with people from India and being of African decent I have seen the role skin bleaching takes in some peoples lives. I personally don't see skin bleaching as a good decision. I've seen the transformation of people having rich dark skin attempt a skin bleaching cream and it ends up damaging their skin. The end result doesn't always end in perfectly smooth lighter skin.

I would love to hear about your take on skin bleaching...

xoxo, 

Elizabeth Giwa

Lighter Skin, Better Acceptance

In a YouTube series two women who are best friends embark on an experiement to help answer the question of men showing lighter complexion women more attention than dark skin women.

Check out the first episode or perhaps the whoele first season (if you have time) of how the story plays out.

"Hello Cupid"

xoxo,

Elizabeth Giwa

Social Media and Skin Color

On social network sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram there have been common posts about the topic of skin shade within the African American Community. 
Usually these topics involve some type of Hashtag that allows other users to see other posts about the same topic. In the case of the tweet above a Twitter user uses the trending topic #darkgirls to give his input on the topic.

Skin color and shade has been a topic for many years amongst different races. With new social media outlets the exposure of skin shade discussion among the African American community has risen. In posts from Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram users are constantly debating about the social issues of dark and light skin. The topic of skin shades and one being better than the other in a race is mind boggling. Instead of our race to come together and uplift one another we find ways to say how a certain shade is better than the next. The phrase "pretty for a dark skin girl", is one I've heard countless times.

There have been some positive movements toward acceptance of skin color in the African American community. There's been a change in the women we see in advertisements both commercial and print, TV shows, and music videos. We've seen more women of color hold high ranking jobs in fortune 500 companies that look just like us. This is the positive change and the positive influence that will hopefully reach black girls across the world to know they are beautiful no matter their skin tone, race, religion.

On social network sites like Tumblr we can see the different movements that were created to show the beauty of being dark skin. The purpose of these pages is to highlight and promote the uniqueness of black women who were at a point in time not considered beautiful.






















xoxo,

Elizabeth Toyin

Dark Skin vs. Light Skin

For as long as I can remember the topic of dark skin and light skin has been discussed. Young girls are made to believe that because their skin is darker they aren't as beautiful as the next girl who is lighter in complexion. 

Have you ever been engaged in a conversation or debate about skin shades? Or have you been the topic of discussion when it comes to skin complexion?

xoxo, 

Elizabeth Toyin

Her Beautiful Skin

This blog was created to bring awareness to issues we have within the African American race. The goal is to promote equality and acceptance amongst ourselves. The topic of skin shade and color seems to always be prevalent with no signs of letting down. It's time to stand up and come together as one. A beautiful race. 

Feel free to use this as a platform to tell your story and ways we can positively impact those to come after us...

xoxo,

Elizabeth Toyin