before/after

Dominican baseball star Sammy Sosa’s skin seems to be turning white. His publicist can say whatever… metrosexual skin treatments, bad lighting, lemon astringent… But, coupled with the permed hair and green contact lenses, there’s a pretty complete story. He probably doesn’t like being Black.

Is this new? Heck no. Skin lightening and a million potions for becoming more Euro-lovely have existed for a long time. My grandma used them, I’ve seen them around the world, and I even used them when I was much younger and confused about how I matched what society told me was pretty.

It seems that every country where people are pigmented has an aesthetic caste system based on color. Latin cultures are certainly no different. That’s why I find the concept of the monolithic “Latino” to be so perplexing — as are the generic images of tanned people with straight hair that are universally meant to depict “Latin” in pop culture.

I’m not a Latina. I was just mistaken for one enough times on the streets of New York that I decided to finally learn Spanish. At least then I could give directions to the people asking me for help every day. I spent time throughout Latin America and noticed something interesting:  a heck of a lot of Black people. Then I noticed something else, few of them wanted to be identified as “Black” because that was bad, just about as bad as being identified as indigenous or “Indian.”

To this day, I find it rare to hear a genuine conversation about race and Latinos. If anything, hopefully the fact the Sammy Sosa is being accused of pulling a Michael Jackson might start a dialogue about the reality of skin color and the social invisibility of darker Latinos.

What pops to mind is one of my Latin college professors joking that if you watched typical Spanish-speaking television dramas, you would think that they were cast in Sweden.

I am just sick and tired of people saying that the Williams sisters are “ugly.” Are you kidding me? First this kind of nonsense. And now a representative from the All England Club implying to London’s Daily Mail that the reason higher ranked Serena Williams was playing in Court 2 and not Centre Court is because Victoria Azarenka from Belarus and Romania’s Sorana Cirstea are more attractive (got this from deadspin.com).

First, this unfairly objectifies women athletes. If professional sports were primarily about looks, I would love to be able to make some serious visual edits to the men on ESPN. Second, the constant shots taken at the beautiful Williams sisters for not being “attractive” enough are just racist. Many people would strongly differ with the assertion that Serena and Venus are anything less than stunning. Sometimes, the bigotry is blatant (see the comments on FanIQ.com, particularly the guy who asks if Serena was posing nude in Jane magazine or wearing a “black dress”). More often, we get more subtle reminders that mainstream standards of beauty are based on European-ness and that dark skin is not welcome in the spotlight.

Living in Atlanta as a recent MBA graduate, it is only natural to assume that I should know how to golf. Golf is ubiquitous in the South, I have learned. There’s lots of space and people seem inclined to wear collared shirts and khakis anyway, so I suppose that it makes sense. Sign me up.

I am the happy recipient of a new set of golf clubs, given to me as a graduation gift from someone special. I also have a cute golf hat and shoes. I can dress the part but I don’t really know what to do. Apparently, that’s okay because people tell me that as enthusiastic as golfers are, very few people are actually good at it. And that’s supposed to be part of the fun.

I’m all for a new experience. And as foreign as I am to this whole golf thing, I figure when in Rome… But I wonder if getting into golf will make me an incurable goof like NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg. According to the New York Times, he is obsessed and diligent but still sucks. Plus, with my street cred already dwindling, could I pick a more bougie activity to get involved with? Note: several examples in the Times story of Bloomberg awkwardly and inappropriately trying to use golf references to buddy up with the common folk.

Really, I don’t care all that much about how inept or bougie I might look learning to golf. I’ll just conjure up movie legend and cool lady Katharine Hepburn. She was a veritable golf diva.

Katharine Hepburn, golfstress