Black erasure and celebrity peddling of whiteness : a study of skin bleaching among black women in South Africa

Abstract

Skin bleaching has become a growing norm in South Africa among black women. Well-known South African celebrities such as Kelly Khumalo and Khanyi Mbau are associated with lightening their skin. In West Africa, the Cameroonian artist Dencia has developed her own skin lightening product called Whitenicious and she confirms that she herself uses the product. In contrast to these celebrities who are encouraging the use of skin lightening products, Lupita Nyongo the movie star, in her acceptance speech after winning an Oscar embraced her blackness and spoke openly of her own insecurities over her dark skin and how she learned to love her skin. Celebrities carry credibility and prestige, and their use of skin lighteners are perceived as being acceptable. The use of skin lightening products is popularised by some female celebrities on their social media sites, while some music stars produce songs that celebrate fair skin as symbol of beauty, for example, ngiphete mtwana yellow in Hamba nge vura song by DJ Citi Lytes and Sjava (I am hanging out with a fair-skinned woman). Using the theories of ideology and society, power and rearticulating post-colonial theory, this study tackles four critical questions: what is the rationale behind black South African women bleaching their skin? Secondly, what intervention is necessary in order to address skin bleaching culture among black women? Lastly, how do celebrities contribute to the ideology of fair skin as epitome of beauty? A non-participant digital ethnography was used to collect data from four female celebrities and one international celebrity, namely Nomasondo Mshoza Mnisi a kwaito singer, Khanyi Mbau a television personality and Kelly Khumalo a pop singer on Instagram and Facebook pages, and Dencial a Cameroonian international pop singer. A standardised open-ended interview was used to interview street vendors who sell skin lightning products in Mankweng a town in Limpopo Province. Focus group discussions were used to collect data; they were divided into three sub groups. The findings revealed that celebrity performances of skin bleaching have a big influence on the perception of fair skin as epitome of beauty among ordinary South Africans. Keywords: Skin bleaching, skin lightening, mass communication, social media, beauty, celebrity culture, identity, feminine body, South Africa