Many people think I am crazy when I bring up the issue of color within the Latino Community. They tilt their head to the side with a crazy look and say "Really?" I have mentioned several times that most Latinos are color struck and feel that marrying a lighter skin man or woman is a way of raising up our people. But, Sammy Sosa took it to a whole new level.
Sammy Sosa was an icon in the 1990's with his battle to be the home run king against Mark McGuire in Major League Baseball. Those two men brought back baseball from the dark ages that was caused by the labor strike. It also brought the out the fact that Sammy was Dominican; a very dark skinned Latino.
He has a very good public persona. Despite his issues at the congressional hearing on steroids where he, all of a sudden doesn't know English, he has always been the type of person to attract attention. I regarded his skin color to very much be apart of who he is, it was apart of his swag as a baseball player and a Latino. Sammy represents Afro-Latinos just as much as Roberto Clemente during his career.
So the question is, how insecure does one have to feel in order to be able make your skin lighter? Was he feeling left out? He shows up to the Latin Grammy's looking like Mc Lyte. Really Sammy? When I looked up the reason why he went through this transformation, I was shocked with what I found. He went through a skin rejuvenation process that temporarily lightens the skin color. Apparently women do this all the time according to his friends. They say he will be back to his negrito skin color soon.
Let's break this down. So Sammy decides that he is going to rejuvenate his skin right before one of the biggest Latino events of the year. I would like to know what woman does this and gets the same results as Sosa did. Last time I checked, rejuvenating black skin did not need make it white. Think about all the white people who are desperate to get darker and go to tanning salons so they can be a shade closer to our beautiful black skin.
I am sorry, but I am not buying it. I think it is a piss poor excuse. I think Sammy succumbed to the pressures that of being Afro-Latino in Latin America. He has now become an affront to me and all Afro-Latinos who are proud of our heritage and proud of our appearance.
It is not a good look Sammy. Not at all.
2 comments:
I won't lie. I saw that and was IMMEDIATELY disgusted.
As much as I was proud of Sosa for all those years, I'm now revolted by this apparent subconscious self-hate. As you have said on many occasions, this is a underlying problem in our community. And a horrible subculture in sub-Saharan Africa, quiet as kept.
Sammy gets the complete gasface for this.
When this news first broke I just shook my head. This is beyond ridiculous. Then I had to explain it to my brown-skinned, sport fan son. I finished by saying, "Whatever he says, even if he believes it, he hates himself." My son said, "Yeah, he looks pretty scary now." If it had been an unintended result he would've been suing everyone he could to get his God give complexion back. Like Michael Jackson he has the means to do whatever he wants, but because he can does that mean he should?
In the long run, probably not.
Post a Comment