WP1: Beauty Through a Black Lens
Growing up everyone tells you that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that the standard of beauty is relative, but in the real world as much as people wish this were true it simply is not. Naturally, with 7.75 billion people on the planet, everyone has their own sense of beauty as well as who or what they find attractive, but when those 7.75 billion people come together as a planet or as individual cultures a standard will appear. This standard of beauty, fortunately for some and unfortunately for others, affects everything we do. This unequal standard affects black women and other marginalized groups at exponentially higher rates than those who identify with the majority. Thus, the beauty standard in America should be examined and analyzed in terms of how it affects black women.
Throughout history, beauty standards have highlighted the majority and mistreated the minority, when in reality beauty is not something that can be standardized in the first place. All people come in different shapes and sizes which sounds cliche but is true. Choosing to praise one type of person but bring down another over something neither party can choose creates an imbalanced world full of dehumanizing pressure as the standard that has been created is impossible to reach. This standard is present in every aspect of life, therefore making it extremely difficult to overcome or make a better version of yourself outside of society’s ideals.
Regardless of the body type or features that you have, everyone falls victim to the impossible standard society has created. Fat people fight to find clothing that fits them and face trials and tribulations daily for the sole purpose of making it through each day. Ignorant doctors tell them that all of their health problems would be solved with weight loss, then tell them that weight loss can be achieved by a healthy diet and exercise alone while completely disregarding their mental health. Skinny people put up with others performing microaggressions against them, people constantly telling them to ‘eat a burger’ and dismissing their concerns about body dysmorphia. No matter what side of the spectrum you are on, society’s poor management of the reactions to different body types perpetuates horrendous things like eating disorders, mental health issues, and body dysmorphia that stick with people for the rest of their lives.
Society’s poor management of the beauty standard in terms of body types is a primary issue and as such has prime importance in the world, however society’s mismanagement of people goes beyond just that. Things like race, sexuality, and gender also factor into the flawed beauty standard and peoples skewed perceptions of themselves.
As a black girl who grew up in a predominantly white neighborhood, I was never the first choice in the dating scene or the person who was complimented constantly on their looks. I never thought I was traditionally pretty despite my parents telling me that I was every chance they got. I looked at my white friends and secretly wished for straighter hair or a lighter complexion. Knowing that I was not the beauty standard of my area took an extreme toll on my view of myself. Eventually I started to believe that I wasn’t pretty and that I’d always be subpar in comparison to everyone else around me. However, when I visited places that had more black people I noticed that there were more people that looked like me and more people that sought me out or viewed me as a part of the beauty standard. This was uplifting and reassured me that I had aesthetic value in a community, even if it was just one. But the world is not a predominantly black space, and I would have to return to my white suburban life eventually.
Many other black women in America experience the same feeling of being devalued in society as I did. In a study conducted in 2015, researchers surveyed a number of black women in college regarding their view of themselves and their appearance in relation to the environment around them. The participants were asked about things like their hair, body type, skin tone, and where they got their view of beauty from. One participant discussed her view of her body type in relation to other black women. She talked about how she “thought that what it meant to be a balck female was to be curvy” and therefore “wanted to be curvy [just to] fit in with the other black women (Awad et. al, 2015).” Even within our own community and beauty standard black women are placed into boxes and asked to fit that box perfectly despite the fact that all people are unique and different.
Having unrealistic eurocentric beauty standards as well as the separate standards of the black community placed on black women at a young age has an extreme affect on their mental health. A study conducted in 2018 discussed the relationship between body image as seen in social media versus in real life and how that impacts mental health. According to said study, “negative body image can be viewed as a core aspect of psychological well being” and when what you see in media does not reflect reality one’s perspective of themselves can change in a negative way (MacCallum, 2018). This disconnect in your view of yourself and what’s popular in society creates the possibility of one’s self esteem plummeting which can severely inhibit your ability to function as a member of society. People being berated for their looks can also lead to mental illnesses like depression and anxiety, which further hinders your ability to function. This is detrimental to all people, but affects black women on an elevated level.
Black women have to fight more than just distorted beauty standards that solely highlight eurocentric features, they must also face colorism, misogyny, and racism. Even compliments regarding black women are often microaggressions and backhanded. They constantly hear things like ‘how pretty they are for a black girl’, ‘how smart they are for a black girl’, ‘how well spoken they are for a black girl’ or ‘how long their hair is for a black girl.’ The list goes on but whatever compliment one comes up with it is usually followed by ‘for a black girl.’ Constantly being told that your beauty or intelligence is only good in relation to the preconceived standard for your race and gender causes you to put limits on what you can do based on the standard you are given.
These limits make you believe that you can only go a certain distance in life and that you are only worth a certain amount, an amount or distance that is significantly less than people from other demographics. This plus all the other hardships people have to deal with in life make living in America as a black woman extremely difficult.
Beyond mental health, the beauty standard also affects how black women are able to live their lives in society. Presentation is a large issue that black women have to consider when participating in the world. As people who have been labeled as aggressive, loud, and ghetto, black women have to go the extra mile to present themselves in a completely different light.They are expected to wear their hair a certain way, talk a certain way, act a certain way, and dress a certain way just to be seen as professional, nonthreatening, and presentable.
Even when attempting to present in ways that are pleasing to society’s eye, microaggressions occur almost daily in the workplace. People frequently comment on black women’s hair, outfits, or their general appearance in a degrading fashion. Most people comment on black women’s hair practices, expressing wonder in how frequently black women can change their hair even when the process of black hair care is explained to them numerous times, or when it is in its natural state more expectations are put on them to be able to do certain things (Awad et. al, 2015). It is not untypical for a black woman to have to process her hair with chemicals, damage it with heat, or tuck it away under a wig in order to look more professional to get a job or to keep the job they already have. Having something as small as one’s hair be something that prevents them from maintaining a stable income reinforces the thought that black women are on the bottom of the societal ladder. This general fascination goes to show how black women are often seen as mystical, wondrous, or abnormal due to their hair practices.
Despite this feeling of wonder and mystery that surrounds black women, they — as well as women of color in general- are frequently misrepresented in research. Oftentimes, white women act as the basis for research and are generalized as all women even where white voices are not necessary (Poran, 2002). This is due to the eurocentric beauty standard and the belief that only the majority needs to be heard. Being left out of research or scientific conversations in general feeds into the narrative that the voices of black women are not needed in society, which further perpetuates the idea of black women being less than. In addition, it further isolates women from the academic sphere as it tells them they are not qualified enough to participate in the discourse. Removing black women from these scientific spaces also limits the career paths they are able to pursue and therefore their ability to make money and pursue their passions.
The beauty standard in America is obviously flawed and takes an extreme toll on everyone involved. Black women are especially affected by this standard as it effectively excludes them from being considered beautiful in society. There are many ways in which the beauty standard is used against black women which presents a larger issue than just the flaws in the beauty standard. The standard of beauty should continue to be evaluated in order to provide justice to those who have been wronged by it and to provide equity for all types of people.
Works Cited
Awad, Germine H, et al. “Beauty and Body Image Concerns among African American College Women.” The Journal of Black Psychology, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1 Dec. 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4713035/
MacCallum, Fiona, and Heather Widdows. “Altered Images: Understanding the Influence of Unrealistic Images and Beauty Aspirations.” Health Care Analysis : HCA : Journal of Health Philosophy and Policy, Springer US, Sept. 2018, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6061013/
Poran, Maya A. “Denying Diversity: Perceptions of Beauty and Social Comparison Processes Among Latina, Black, and White Women.” Sex Roles, vol. 47, no. 1, Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers, 2002, pp. 65–81, https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020683720636.
