links for 2011-07-01

By On July 1, 2011 · 2 Comments
  • Cornrows? Non-traditional? What Rubbish | Guardian (UK)
    "Cornrows, 'non-traditional'? A hairstyle depicted in Stone Age pictures in the Sahara? This begs the question: non-traditional to whose eyes? I can't think of a single black friend, male or female, who hasn't worn them at some point. They are both a rite of passage and a source of pride. Only a fool who knows nothing about black cultural heritage would describe cornrows in such a way. In terms of hairstyles, they are about as traditional as you can get, and excluding a child for having them is insulting and offensive."
    (tags: via:carleandriacook uk hair education racism blacks)
  • Light-Skinned Black Women Receive Shorter Prison Sentences Than Darker-Skinned Women | GOOD
    "Called "The Impact of Light Skin on Prison Time for Black Female Offenders," the study found a group of Villanova professors assessing the sentences of more than 12,000 black female defendants in North Carolina. Their findings were horrifying: Even after controlling for things like prior convictions, crime severity, and thinness, women with light skin received sentences that were 12 percent shorter on average than dark-skinned women. Lighter women also had their actual time served reduced by about 11 percent."
    (tags: via:carleandriacook colorism racism blackwomen prison)
 
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  • ummm….what?!?!?!

    How did they go about determining who was and wasn’t dark skinned? Is there a standardized complexion scale or something? There are of course going to be some obvious cases, but what about people who would be described as in the middle?

  • Alex

    Umm…What?!?!?!,

    Dare I say the paperbag test still is used in some circles to determine that.

    And that folks who are color-struck tend to categorize everything as either dark or light, no middle or in between.

    *sigh* (@ this practice, not your comment)