Its Only Skin Deep
Colorism in Cosplay
People today seem to have a lot of excuses and problems for everything they see, do, or dislike. Take the website 4chan.com, that actually has a thread dedicated to belittling people who cosplay doesn't fit their standard. As a dark skinned cosplay, there are a few problems we face. And today I will do my absolute best to address and answer them all accordingly. But first, what is colorism?
“Colorism is a practice of discrimination by which those with lighter skin are treated more favorably than those with darker skin. In the African-American community, this traditionally played out via the paper bag test. Those lighter than the standard paper lunch bag were allowed entry into fraternities, sororities and other realms of black upper class life, while dark-skinned blacks were excluded. The Spike Lee film “School Daze” is an exploration of colorism.” About.com
This is something a lot of countries associate themselves with, and unfortunately this has paved the way for discriminatory beauty standards. This is why America didn't really start adapting tanning as a beauty ideal until the 80s. Although times have change, the idea has unfortunately passed from generation to generation through the use of the media, family, and societal associations. But in the cosplay community this idea isn't as rampant as it is outside of cosplay, but nevertheless, it is still present. And must be address and resolved. How can we stop people from believing this idea? By speaking out against it. And if you witness it happening in front of you, do something about it. It is our duty in the cosplay community to stand up for what is right and be the hero not only outside but inside too.
Here I will answer the 2 questions commonly asked by dark skinned cosplayers, and have answered them as best as possible. I am not the spokesperson for cosplay, but if society has showed us anything, it’s that one voice can make a difference.
1. Can I cosplay a lighter skinned character, even if my skin is dark?
Yes, cosplay does not discriminate on color. If you want to cosplay someone and feel as though you are too dark to do it, that’s a terrible mind set to have, especially in a community who have various characters from various skin tones. Some even unreachable by humans.
2. Am I allowed to change my skin color to depict a character that is not my race?
Depends. If you are cosplaying anything that is not human, and change your skin tone, then yes it is acceptable. But if you are cosplaying a human and the skin tone just happens to be lighter or darker, there is no need to change your skin color to better look like the character. As a thespian, you never really see anyone change their skin color to look like someone from another race. The reason is because it’s unnecessary and could be seen as racist. Especially with America’s history of minstrel shows and black face.
Padgett, Ken 2014
That’s pretty much all you need to know about changing your skin tone to better look like a character you are portraying. If you feel wrong doing it, then maybe it is a bad idea. And even if you don’t feel bad. Maybe you should ask around, it never hurts.
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