Beyoncé's washed-out L'Oreal ad and role models

Beyoncé’s L’Oreal print ad (shown to the right, in which she appears totally whitewashed) has been sparking discussion all over the blogosphere. I was reading some thoughts presented by one of my daily reads, The Black Snob, and came across a comment to her post that went something like this:

"…who cares how light or dark Beyonce is? She is an incredibly talented singer and she has done well for herself. She doesn't go out and get trashed or forget to wear important articles of clothing under short skirts, like certain other celebrities. Actually, she is one of the few celebrities I would actually call a good role model. It's really none of my business what shade her skin is.”

This really got me to thinking. Does the commenter have a point? Is Beyoncé a good role model? Why do we all seem to care so much about her complexion?

I had to travel back in time to find my answers to these questions. Back to when I was about 10.  Even though my mom wore her hair natural, I seriously believed that light skin and straight hair were the norm.

Why? Well, ever notice that there are virtually no ads on TV or in mainstream fashion magazines for Black beauty products?

Truth be told, advertising lied to me on a daily basis.  Ads for hair dyes, foundations, lip sticks – all of it. I’d watch a Pantene TV spot and then save up my allowance for a bottle shampoo because I thought it’d make my thick curly hair flow in the wind.

Notice, you'll never find a disclaimer on a Pantene ad that says, "Our advanced Pro-V Formula will not work for Black hair. No matter how many times you use it." After many failed attempts, months of savings spent and a few tears shed, I realized that Pantene would never do for me what it claimed it could do for everyone.

So finally, at the age of 11, I got my hair chemically relaxed. When I walked out of the beauty parlor, I had straight hair down to my waist that the wind could carry effortlessly.

I’d never felt such joy.

Now, we see beautiful high-profile Black women taking the Pro-V standard of beauty (the White standard, really) and emulating it. Women like Tyra Banks (shown), sporting fake hair every day. Claiming she’s a “slave to her weave.” Women like Beyoncé, who is becoming lighter and lighter right before our very eyes.

But in reality, they are projecting the ultimate lie. They’re celebrating this phony ideal that little Black girls will try to achieve. That little Black girls have been trying to achieve for years.

And lying does not a good role model make.

Beyoncé's L’Oreal ad? That’s not African-American beauty. That’s someone else’s beauty. I'd like to see a little more of ours.

Related:
Jezebel: Photoshop of Horrors
Guardian: Mighty White
Afrobella: Whitewash and Photoshop
Racialicious: Feria Can Lighten Anything You Want
E! Online: We Didn't Lighten Beyonce. Honest.

Comments

[The Black Snob]

Man. You gave me a flashback to me and John Frieda products which promised to take the frizz out of my hair and make mine flow, bouncy and curly together. I bought tons of that crap, but it was too weak and too thin to work.

Despite a slightly more diverse representation in the press, Westernized beauty is still idolized in our country and it seems a little silly to pretend like black girls and boys aren't bombarded with images of women, white and black, with long flowing hair (fake and real), all tan, light or white, but no one dark brown. And if their hair is curly, it's only of a particular grade.

And I don't think any celebrity is an ideal "role model" unless your kid wants to go into showbiz. Then maybe. Other than that your role models should always be someone close to you -- a parent, a sibling, a teacher, a mentor. Not someone in a lace front wig, singing into a mike, dancing on a stage far, far away from reality.

[Katie]

I agree that that photo is very strange. Everyone knows that Beyonce is black, so why are they whitewashing her? That in itself would be enough for me to disbelieve their marketing claims.

And I agree with you that it's ridiculous that so many beautiful, highly-visible black women disguise their hair and give unrealistic expectations to young girls.

The beauty world has a lot of strange expectations that cause a lot of grief for young girls of every color. It's really tragic.

[RyanB]

@the black snob -
John Frieda! Ugh, Frizz Ease was the bane of my teenage existence. I swear that stuff made my hair even frizzier than it already was.

@Katie -
L'Oreal claims that they didn't whitewash the photo. Either they're lying, or Beyonce is using some kind of lightening product. Both scenarios are equally sad.

[Elita]

Sorry, I don't think anything sinister is going on here. I don't think L'Oreal lightened Beyonce's skin for the ad. Beyonce is very light-skinned in real life, her eyes are very light brown, her mother is extremely light and has green eyes. Her mom is from Louisiana and refers to herself as "creole." There is a lot of white blood in her ancestry. Did ya'll see Dreamgirls? She looked extremely light in that movie, and that was her on film, no Photoshop. I mean, does she really look any darker in this photo (a still from the movie)?
http://bp1.blogger.com/_YPLSyaja5vU/R5VFaSjJPeI/AAAAAAAAAaA/9qZLhyTLo4g/s1600-h/beyonce+scarf.png

I do agree with the other sentiments, though, about how it's wrong for women of color to promote false advertising. That is definitely not the texture of Beyonce's natural hair and I surely wouldn't recommend any black folks use Feria to dye their hair (not that it would even take anyway). I think we should at least be glad there is some progress. Several black women have become the standard of beauty and are featured in ads for make-up that really are aimed at white women. That has to count for something.

[D]

thank God i am an African...i beleive most ( but not all) african Americans and even Caribbeans have such a high level of inferiority complex...i mean it is clear her skin is digitaly altered and yet some would sit down and claim how her mum is creole, french etc...why always give credit to the white man for a black persons looks even when that look is madeup? there are black people who have such paler skin but B is def not one of them and that is not to say her honey skin is not beautiful...we must celebrate the shades we come in...being a model myself i dnt see nothing wrong with photoshooping as the entertainment industry want to sell an unrealistic fantasy...however when that fantacy is so narrowed to a particular way of looking, it become problematic.i mean in African u ve the ethopians, somalians, the fulani(my people) and the huasa who often have paler skin, sriaghter features and striaghter hair but u also have their equaly beautiful dark skin sister especial the west Africa (Ghanaians and Nigerians) who are undeniably so beauty it can take ur breath away...i mean if they want a paler black model then use a paler black person but dnt use a tanner person and then alter their skin...but on the other hand this is happening in America(not soo surprice)...u no what they say back home 'one is not enslave when shackles are put on their feet...but when one is made to perceive themselve as inferior' hence the more i look a certain way, the more i am accepted and thus better.oh MOther Africa Free ur Children from slavery, slavery of the mind.

[Diane]

She looked darker here, that's for sure: http://mrsgrapevine.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/beyonce_jay_soho2.png

Whites getting tans and blacks lightening their skin..it's like they're subconsciously trying to meet in the middle somewhere.

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[anita]

why is it every time someone brings up beyonce's ever lightening complexion, her eye color, her "blonde" hair, and/or its straightness does someone always have to bring up her creole ancestry and the white blood in the family? beyonce is black-- period. maybe people don't remember beyonce when she first came out with destiny's child before they blew up-- she was not as light as she is in many of her current ads,etc. furthermore, many blacks who are darker than beyonce have white ancestry, yet no one ever brings that up as if it only exists for someone who has a light complexion and is famous. (beyonce has to look white friendly for big bucks to be made. even when she did a make-up loreal ad, they had her kiss a white guy on the cheek. helloooo!) it's as if because b. doesn't have the black parent-white parent thing going, people are like "darn, we can't lose that one. she must have white in her. we gotta get that out there...somehow" many blacks period have white, indigeneous, east indian or other in their gene pool and just looking at someone can't always tell you that. so please stop with the beyonce white ancestry stuff. stope trying to make her something that she is not. please stop the madness! Please. she is black and so is her mother.

[Anna]

Her skin has obviously been lightened by a whole lot. Yes I get how she's creole and has mixed blood, but that doesn't mean her skin was ever that light. Take a look at some of these pics.http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.celebrity-hairstyles.org/beyonce/images/beyonce7.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.celebrity-hairstyles.org/beyonce/beyoncehairstyle6.shtml&usg=__VUhlhLkF72jgxXmMGwfBZveXlqM=&h=457&w=350&sz=46&hl=en&start=37&sig2=PMM5Tft0KCengiSaBcAUlw&zoom=1&tbnid=CDa_fH2_h5lMbM:&tbnh=125&tbnw=96&ei=mVQdTfOKL8OBlAfdx5SxDA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbeyonce%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D589%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C818&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=658&vpy=222&dur=636&hovh=257&hovw=196&tx=89&ty=166&oei=f1QdTZeXB4iq8Aaqs4HdDQ&esq=3&page=3&ndsp=30&ved=1t:429,r:5,s:37&biw=1280&bih=589

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://images.fanpop.com/images/image_uploads/Beyonce-paparazzi-beyonce-128584_1000_1272.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.fanpop.com/spots/beyonce/images/128584&usg=__cMo9PrX-KtKY_XrYTtourPkfo9Y=&h=1272&w=1000&sz=83&hl=en&start=136&sig2=35HNvpvlIETQkVS0Z-Jhwg&zoom=1&tbnid=-ZCMTj_LW2cQcM:&tbnh=141&tbnw=111&ei=uVQdTf2fDsKblgfd0IG9DA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbeyonce%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D589%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C2762&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=493&oei=f1QdTZeXB4iq8Aaqs4HdDQ&esq=6&page=7&ndsp=25&ved=1t:429,r:8,s:136&tx=81&ty=77&biw=1280&bih=589

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://img2.timeinc.net/people/i/2007/gallery/beyonce_si/beyonce_knowles1_400.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.people.com/people/gallery/0,,20011789_20011975,00.html&usg=__X6QUZeSDEouuzre8oL_9Cwe_K1Y=&h=400&w=400&sz=51&hl=en&start=67&sig2=Qi6cJ9DsvAK5_9i5Lnxq4A&zoom=1&tbnid=rpEVFaa7UF9MYM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=130&ei=51QdTfL5DoWClAeBgM3QDA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbeyonce%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D589%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C1390&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=589&vpy=139&dur=573&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=154&ty=149&oei=f1QdTZeXB4iq8Aaqs4HdDQ&esq=4&page=4&ndsp=23&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:67&biw=1280&bih=589

L'oreal is going too far with their photoshopping not just with Beyonce, but with everyone. They reshape the nose,lips,everything and the image becomes very fake and ugly. The thing that I'm wondering is why would Beyonce let them change her skin color like that?
Maybe the same reason why she wears weaves and is ashamed to show her REAL hair.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://coolcruelworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/beyonce-hairline.jpg&imgrefurl=http://coolcruelworld.com/2010/12/03/hair-debate-doctors-warn-dangers-of-lace-fronts-weaves/&usg=__RLGGKIQBFhl_T66IE-wg8dKgonI=&h=310&w=477&sz=168&hl=en&start=0&sig2=2FonAIXuQo8YPuS2R_MPSg&zoom=1&tbnid=LUbTTZQNKDhDPM:&tbnh=107&tbnw=143&ei=BVYdTdbUNoGClAeHoKTXDA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbeyonce%2Bhair%2Bweaves%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D589%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=577&vpy=189&dur=233&hovh=181&hovw=279&tx=174&ty=105&oei=vVUdTZ7LLoP_8AaP3O3TDQ&esq=12&page=1&ndsp=29&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:0