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Light Is Light, But It Ain’t White: Colorism Lessons From the Meghan Markle Interview
British treatment of Markle points to colorism’s pervasiveness and the unfamiliarity some lighter-skinned Black women have with its sting
After Meghan Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey, handfuls of Black women immediately flooded social media to express their support and utter disgust with how she was treated during her time at Buckingham Palace — myself included. During the interview, Markle confided that while she was pregnant with Archie, the palace expressed concerns to Harry over how dark Archie’s skin might be. This was one of several jaw-dropping and glaringly racist experiences Markle shared during the interview.
But this was not the first time I felt a connection to Markle, and it was also not the first time Black women took to the rafters to cheer on their proverbial sis. While numerous factors can explain this connection, it could be that the experiences Markle shared were far from that of royalty. It did not matter that she is a beautiful, biracial woman with slender facial features, long flowing tresses, and fair skin. She still was not White enough to be accepted by the royal family: plot twist. Markle expressed a familiar sting that many Black women have experienced time and time again — in particular, darker-skinned Black women.
Is “light-skin privilege” a thing? Yes. It is, and I say this as a Black woman with lighter skin. I do not take pleasure in recognizing that I have experienced a certain level of privilege due to my skin tone at some point in my life. But just as heterosexuals must acknowledge their privilege and as Whites must acknowledge theirs, I have to recognize that in the U.S., Black folks who have lighter skin often experience preferential treatment. If this weren’t the case, colorism would not exist.
It’s great that the royal family and all who don’t support Markle and Harry — Piers Morgan, I’m looking at you — have been getting dragged all up and down the highways and byways of social media this week. But what stood out as the most striking part of the interview and the conversations that followed is that Markle, light skin and all, was not light enough for her English in-laws…
