Popular Nigerian Writer Shows Support for Vera Sidika’s Bleaching On an International Platform

Vera Sidika’s decision to lighten/bleach her skin was met with a lot of shock and wonder which transformed to severe backlash. Since then, Vera has been on the receiving end of a stream of vitriol thanks to her decision. In my opinion, I think most people are super pissed that she did not hide in shame like other people who have had this procedure done on their skin, instead she announced to all and sundry that she had shed off some melanin.

Anyhow there is a  writer by the name Sede Alonge  who writes for the Telegraph UK who thinks peoples should just get off Vera’s back
because “Not all African women believe ‘black is beautiful’. And that’s OK”

Sede Writes:

A bullish Sidika says she is proud of the way she looks and thinks African societies are hypocritical on this thorny issue. But her honesty roused the ire of many social media users across the continent. 

Passions inevitably run high among Africans whenever someone brings into play racial issues. On the topic of skin whitening, emotionally charged slogans such as “black is beautiful” are often employed in an attempt to make women like Sidika feel as if they are somehow betraying their race. Such women are then accused of having inferiority complexes towards white people.

Adding that “I myself am a dark skinned Nigerian woman who does not use whitening creams or soaps, but I feel that while there are valid health concerns as to the side-effects of skin lightening products, it should remain an individual’s prerogative to be who or what they want to be.

Yes, black is beautiful, but so also is white, brown, yellow and the many shades in between.

“Skin lightening should not be automatically regarded as an individual’s outright rejection of their race. If a woman feels that lightening her skin will make her prettier or more confident, then society should let her be and not impose itself as judge and jury on her concept of beauty. It is high-time Africans stop being hysterical and overly-defensive about issues of their self worth and identity.”She concluded

This are just excerpt from the article which was originally posted  here