Thanks for letting me know. I’ve now updated the first YouTube video so it will play.

You can’t compare a person that is lightening their skin to a person darkening. Its not the same thing. Your thinking of it as just coloring. Thats not whats going on, well it is but their is also something else going on. One side is doing it because self hate and the other side is doing it with the mind set of cosmetics. Its hard having dark skin in this culture but the amazing thing is… Well in exchange for all the pain/hate you receive to see what millions of people don’t see. Its amazing. Its a blessing in disguise of pain.

Lol, you guys seriously don’t know how evil this cream is, lol. Seriously, thats some evil stuff and I’m sure people are reading saying its just cream. Amazing to see this in other brown skin ethnic groups. They had that white cream in American in the early 1900s.

I seriously hope 100 years from now human beings destroy this racism. I’m sure their are millions of inventions that haven’t been invited yet because certain people in society never get a chance. Personally, lol, I doubt it. I hate to say it but experiencing what I have, I doubt we have a chance. But I could be wrong, I hope to God I am. lol.

Yes, I watched the skin cream ad, and don’t agree with it. I have a similar standpoint as you when it comes to choosing clients. Ethics are important to me, but of course these vary considerably depending on the person.

>Who is to say one aisle is racist versus the other?

Keep telling yourself that and you’ll keep rationalizing the profits of companies, and more importantly, rationalzing the attitudes of [somewhat cleverly masked] racism that damage the fabric of entire cultures worldwide. All this would be fine if there was no racism, if having dark skin in India (or the US) was looked upon as no big deal. And it would be fine if being white here (or anywhere) — or should I say “not being beautifully bronzed” actually *IMPEDED* you from making a better life for yourself and your family. But we all know that is nowhere near reality.

The fact of the matter is that “being lighter” in India IS a big deal and clearly plays a part on societal values. And it does so thanks to Western colonization and the monocultural attitudes that came with it and that have remained. Everywhere we go (including here in the good ol’ USA), we try to force our race and culture on others instead of respecting theirs, especially when theirs has dark skin, curly, kinky hair and a host of other unique traits. I have Indian friends who tell me that being light-skinned there is an ideal thanks to marketing campaigns like this over successive generations. And that dark-skinned people there are looked down upon as “lower.” You can even see this racism skewered in a few Indian movies that have been very successful here in the US.

So yeah, keep justifying the polarization of our world, of the haves and have-nots, by saying “it’s their choice to buy” instead of realizing that TV ads and other marketing are insidious ways of “educating” a culture 24/7/365 to hate itself for what it’s not…instead of celebrating itself for what it is.

How about we as consumers look at Unilever and say to them, “That’s wrong, find something non-harmful to make a profit on or we’ll quit buying Dove, etc.” This kind of marketing isn’t “just business.” It’s just plain bad business.

BTW, I work as an advertising copywriter with nearly 20 years in the business. And no, I don’t work on racist campaigns like that.

In America, tons of beauty aisles are lined with tanning lotions, sprays, bronzers, etc. In Asia, they are lined with whitening and skin lightening products. Who is to say one aisle is racist versus the other?

Exactly.

In America, being tan means you are of the middle/upper class. You have the luxury of time and money to travel, go to the beach, lay out in the sun, while the lower class has to stay in doors in McDonalds and flip burgers. Not only are products like Jergens sunless everyday lotion popular, but also instant bronze lotions by Neutrogena and bronze powders. People in America want to be darker.

Interestingly enough, when in America I use bronzer every day. When in China, I don’t. It’s all about the culture you’re in and what definition of beauty you are surrounded with.

Yes – I realize that my explanation only applies to those people that are able to darken/lighten their skin to some degree (this doesn’t apply to Africans). But the products Unilever is selling isn’t designed to change someone’s race.. just their “tan.” And tan is a fashion and a fad. In America, tons of beauty aisles are lined with tanning lotions, sprays, bronzers, etc. In Asia, they are lined with whitening and skin lightening products. Who is to say one aisle is racist versus the other? You can only claim that the Asian products are racist if you claim the American brands and American drug store are racist and want everyone to look darker than they naturally are.