Sunday, April 09, 2006
In Pursuit of Perfection (Searching for the Body Beautiful)
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139: 13-14
For centuries, we as black women have been taught that we are not as beautiful as our white counterparts. The more Afrocentric our look, the uglier we are made to feel. I’m almost certain this phenomenon dates back to slavery and can be attributed to the house slave vs. field slave elitism.
As black women, we have been taught that the darkness of our skin, the fullness of our lips, and the thickness of our waist, are the things that make us unattractive. Our nappy hair is a sign of un-cleanliness and our big noses are a sure sign that we must have descended from apes.
Even our own mothers and grandmothers have perpetrated these feelings of inadequacies on our persons. This was done by using hot combs to straighten our hair, bleaching creams to lighten our skins and repeated attempts to persuade us to marry a light skinned vs. dark skinned brother for fear that their grandchildren would set the family back a few generations if they come out too dark.
In recent years, the desire to become more like our Caucasians sisters has escalated to behavior that is putting our very lives at risk. Eating disorders and plastic surgery that until a few years ago, was unheard of in the African-American community, has spiraled out of control. Bulimia and Anorexia were once words that did not exist in the minds and lives of our young women, but are as widespread today in our schools as the common cold.
Black women are dying everyday from their attempts to become more beautiful. Gastric bypass surgery, breast augmentation, nose jobs, cheek, and chin implants are becoming commonplace as a means to reshape and redefine who we are. Young girls are starving themselves to death, just to fit it.
Even successful black women, who appear to have achieved greatness through their work, are succumbing to the pressures of being in the public eye. Starr Jones and Vivicia A. Fox are but two well-known celebrities who have undergone dramatic procedures to improve their looks. Oprah and Janet Jackson are criticized for gaining even the slightest bit of weight.
A well-known and well-liked Detroit City Council Woman died from complications following bariatric surgery. Although this may be an extreme and isolated case, many women suffer for years both mentally and physically from the devastating effects of long term dieting or surgeries gone bad.
When we are born into this world, as little children we have no preconceived notions about how a person should look. We don’t judge others based on their skin color, hair length, how tall or how short they are. We don’t look at another child and say, she looks different to me. We teach our children these things.
Sometime during our childhood we start judging others by standards we have been taught. We start tearing down one another’s self-esteem. We create doubt in the minds of others on their worthiness. We start going along with the crowd. We start thinking like the crowd instead of thinking for ourselves.
Now I am not trying to imply there is anything wrong with us making cosmetic chances so that we look better or feel healthier. I have acrylic nails, I wear make-up, and I have had dental work done. However, I did these things to help me feel better about myself. Not to be accepted by others.
While doing research on this topic, I came across a very interesting passage written by Wade Hodges. In speaking on the Virtuous Women in one of his sermons, he quoted another passage of scripture from the book of Proverbs. It was from the book of Proverbs, Chapter 11 verse 22. He used the NIV interpretation, which really drove the point home. Proverbs 11, 22 says, like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.
His interpretation stated, don’t get so enamored with the golden ring that you fail to see that it’s stuck in a pigs nose.” In other words, don’t let the beauty fool you. Beauty is fleeting, charm is deceitful, - don’t be led astray by such things.
Self acceptance is the real beauty secret.
For centuries, we as black women have been taught that we are not as beautiful as our white counterparts. The more Afrocentric our look, the uglier we are made to feel. I’m almost certain this phenomenon dates back to slavery and can be attributed to the house slave vs. field slave elitism.
As black women, we have been taught that the darkness of our skin, the fullness of our lips, and the thickness of our waist, are the things that make us unattractive. Our nappy hair is a sign of un-cleanliness and our big noses are a sure sign that we must have descended from apes.
Even our own mothers and grandmothers have perpetrated these feelings of inadequacies on our persons. This was done by using hot combs to straighten our hair, bleaching creams to lighten our skins and repeated attempts to persuade us to marry a light skinned vs. dark skinned brother for fear that their grandchildren would set the family back a few generations if they come out too dark.
In recent years, the desire to become more like our Caucasians sisters has escalated to behavior that is putting our very lives at risk. Eating disorders and plastic surgery that until a few years ago, was unheard of in the African-American community, has spiraled out of control. Bulimia and Anorexia were once words that did not exist in the minds and lives of our young women, but are as widespread today in our schools as the common cold.
Black women are dying everyday from their attempts to become more beautiful. Gastric bypass surgery, breast augmentation, nose jobs, cheek, and chin implants are becoming commonplace as a means to reshape and redefine who we are. Young girls are starving themselves to death, just to fit it.
Even successful black women, who appear to have achieved greatness through their work, are succumbing to the pressures of being in the public eye. Starr Jones and Vivicia A. Fox are but two well-known celebrities who have undergone dramatic procedures to improve their looks. Oprah and Janet Jackson are criticized for gaining even the slightest bit of weight.
A well-known and well-liked Detroit City Council Woman died from complications following bariatric surgery. Although this may be an extreme and isolated case, many women suffer for years both mentally and physically from the devastating effects of long term dieting or surgeries gone bad.
When we are born into this world, as little children we have no preconceived notions about how a person should look. We don’t judge others based on their skin color, hair length, how tall or how short they are. We don’t look at another child and say, she looks different to me. We teach our children these things.
Sometime during our childhood we start judging others by standards we have been taught. We start tearing down one another’s self-esteem. We create doubt in the minds of others on their worthiness. We start going along with the crowd. We start thinking like the crowd instead of thinking for ourselves.
Now I am not trying to imply there is anything wrong with us making cosmetic chances so that we look better or feel healthier. I have acrylic nails, I wear make-up, and I have had dental work done. However, I did these things to help me feel better about myself. Not to be accepted by others.
While doing research on this topic, I came across a very interesting passage written by Wade Hodges. In speaking on the Virtuous Women in one of his sermons, he quoted another passage of scripture from the book of Proverbs. It was from the book of Proverbs, Chapter 11 verse 22. He used the NIV interpretation, which really drove the point home. Proverbs 11, 22 says, like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.
His interpretation stated, don’t get so enamored with the golden ring that you fail to see that it’s stuck in a pigs nose.” In other words, don’t let the beauty fool you. Beauty is fleeting, charm is deceitful, - don’t be led astray by such things.
Self acceptance is the real beauty secret.
