Are you Black, or are you seen as Black? Identifying as Black or African American is one thing, but does your skin tone live up to the expectations of a Black person's experience? "Who is Black?" is the fifth installment of the CNN documentary "Black in America." It sets to answer these questions by looking at the answers within the Black Community and within American society as a whole. Even if society sees you as Black or a of person, people within the Black community may not see you as someone who can identify as Black based on your skin color and experiences.
This episode within the 2008 documentary follows two girls who are struggling to come to terms with their own identity and where fit within the Black community. While the first girl Becca Khalil identifies as Black because her family is from Egypt and was raised learning about her African culture and heritage. However, she is not recognized as Black by her peers because she has a lighter skin tone and is recognized as White by the American government because being of Middle Eastern or North African descent is included within the parameters of being White according to the U.S. Census. Though not being able to explain her heritage to others at first glance, she is seen as someone who is not white, but a person of color. Nayo Jones also struggles with being able to define her identity, being raised within White culture by her White single father, and not knowing her mother who was Black. Of a lighter skin tone, similar to Becca, Nayo has a hard time identifying as Black and being seen as Black by her peers.
The film explains the historical parameters of defining who is Black in America, by first canceling out the possibility of them being by the "One Drop Rule." Which outlines that if you have an ancestor, even five generations back who was Black, that means you can not be seen as White in America by state laws. This law no longer being an official law in the states where they were practiced, however it is still how American society determines whether or not someone is seen as White or not. Then the film goes on to answer the question, once you are categorized as not White, are you seen as Black? Colorism within the Black community answers the question by evaluating someone's skin tone and the privileges or disadvantages may a person given. Black people with lighter skin may identify as Black, but to the people within the Black community, they won't be seen as Black. Lighter skin, even if you are a person of color, is still associated with more privilege politically and socioeconomically than a Black person with a darker skin tone. Comparing the experiences (usually negative encounters such as being harassed or judged), educational and occupational opportunities, and whether or not you are seen as attractive by societal standards as a result of your skin tone.
This film is able to effectively explain how colorism is a tool to divide people in the Black community because of the variation of skin tone. As the film is following these girls of lighter skin tones, you also to get here the perspectives of those with a darker skin tone. Showing how colorism is detrimental to all Black people of the color spectrum, as Black people with a lighter skin tone (like the two girls) struggle with clearly defining their identity, Black people with a darker skin tone tend to struggle with lower self-esteem. An example of this is, is when a seven year old girl in the film does not see herself as pretty or beautiful because of her darker skin tone, and when reading a book, she calls the girl with a darker skin tone ugly. We see this link often in society as someone comments, "You are pretty for a Black girl." Where the film falls short, in my opinion, is failing to completely explore how the way you act is a factor in the way you may identify. The stereotypes of a race may change the way you are seen and how others expect you to behave. The film only briefly shows how role enactment of behaviors commonly associated with the cultural norms of Black people can change the way someone identifies. Nayo's younger sister can easily identify as Black because of the music she listens, the people she hangs out, and the way she acts. Despite being raised in the same household as Nayo, her experiences, interests, and the people she surrounds herself with outside of their house align with the stereotypes and cultural norms of people Black people. Since her younger sister thinks she "acts black," she able to identify as such. Her sister, like many other Black people, is using her positive and negative experiences to define her Blackness, not only her skin tone. Nayo on the other does not fulfill role enactment the same way she believes her sister does which may factor into why she finds it difficult to identify as Black. Overall, I think this is a film worth watching because it able to dissect the difference between identifying as Black and being seen as Black in American. It also demonstrates how the answer to this question can be so subjective, that sometimes the answer can only be based on personal opinion. It has definitely helped me gain a better understanding of how the colorism works within the Black community, by explaining its historical roots and significance today. This documentary also reminds its viewers that it is important to define your own identity despite how you are perceived.
This film is able to effectively explain how colorism is a tool to divide people in the Black community because of the variation of skin tone. As the film is following these girls of lighter skin tones, you also to get here the perspectives of those with a darker skin tone. Showing how colorism is detrimental to all Black people of the color spectrum, as Black people with a lighter skin tone (like the two girls) struggle with clearly defining their identity, Black people with a darker skin tone tend to struggle with lower self-esteem. An example of this is, is when a seven year old girl in the film does not see herself as pretty or beautiful because of her darker skin tone, and when reading a book, she calls the girl with a darker skin tone ugly. We see this link often in society as someone comments, "You are pretty for a Black girl." Where the film falls short, in my opinion, is failing to completely explore how the way you act is a factor in the way you may identify. The stereotypes of a race may change the way you are seen and how others expect you to behave. The film only briefly shows how role enactment of behaviors commonly associated with the cultural norms of Black people can change the way someone identifies. Nayo's younger sister can easily identify as Black because of the music she listens, the people she hangs out, and the way she acts. Despite being raised in the same household as Nayo, her experiences, interests, and the people she surrounds herself with outside of their house align with the stereotypes and cultural norms of people Black people. Since her younger sister thinks she "acts black," she able to identify as such. Her sister, like many other Black people, is using her positive and negative experiences to define her Blackness, not only her skin tone. Nayo on the other does not fulfill role enactment the same way she believes her sister does which may factor into why she finds it difficult to identify as Black. Overall, I think this is a film worth watching because it able to dissect the difference between identifying as Black and being seen as Black in American. It also demonstrates how the answer to this question can be so subjective, that sometimes the answer can only be based on personal opinion. It has definitely helped me gain a better understanding of how the colorism works within the Black community, by explaining its historical roots and significance today. This documentary also reminds its viewers that it is important to define your own identity despite how you are perceived.
