Annotated+Bibliography


 * __Source 1 __**

Butts, Hugh F. "Skin Color Perception and Self-Esteem." Journal of Negro Education 32.2 (1963): 122-28. Rpt. in Journal of Negro Education. Vol. 32. N.p.: Journal of Negro Education, 1963. N. pag. 2. JSTOR. Web. 20 Sept. 2010. . Author Hugh F. Butts is a psychiatrist in New York. The source is an account on the “Skin Color Perception and Self-Esteem” (Butts 122) intended for researchers who can process the advanced amount of information and statistics given. Butts discuss the correlation of self-esteem and race. The subjects of study are a group of African-American children. Butts's theory is that African-American children with a lower self-esteem idealize to be white. According to Butts, African-American children who were from a lower economic background, thought of the variants of skin colors as worth or value. Butts conducted a test which tested the "concept of self" and the "perception of skin color" in children. The test resulted in the fact that there was a preference for skin color that is lighter. This is a tainted perception. Children who suffered from a low self-esteem, identified with white children. In the end the hypothesis was proved. The report was adequately formulated. It is broken up into sections: Introduction, where the purpose of the study is explained; the Method of the Procedure, in which the experiment is described; the Data recorded; Evaluation and Conclusion. I was able to process all of the information given; however, the results for the experiment were recorded in a too intricate way. The test administered was the California Test of Personality, Elementary Series. It is evident that Butts was well aware of this topic, and his statements made were based off of legitimate facts not own assumptions. Due to the legitimacy of his arguments, Butts dissolved any thought of being biased. This source ultimately laid the foundation for rest of my Graduation Project. Although, I am not discussing the role of self esteem in perception of skin color, self-esteem correlates with whether one perceives their race to be attractive or not. I actually was to recreate the experiment administered to the Elementary aged children at Hillcrest Center. I am wondering whether this is too controversial of a test to administer. This source opened my eyes to understand that children are very much aware to topics such as race.

**__Source 2 __**

Hall, Ronald. "The Bleaching Syndrome: African Americans' Response to Cultural Domination Vis-a-Vis Skin Color." //Sage// 26.2 (1995): 172-84. //JSTOR//. Web. 24 Sept. 2010. .

__Information: __ Dr. Ronald Hall, Ph.D. is a professor in the Social Work Department at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. This is a report recorded in the //Journal of Black Studies//, a prominent source of information in issues concerning the African-American community. The intended audience would have to be a researcher or intrigued reader, due to the fact that the reading level is surpasses your average grade-school child. The beginning of the report, Hall states that his overall purpose is to shed some light, and bring about awareness in African-Americans.

__Summary: __ In the report, Hall discusses, //The Bleaching Syndrome//, a term commonly used in African-American Studies. Hall theorizes that an African-American’s efforts to conform into a predominantly White society would result in //The Bleaching Syndrome//. These individuals strongly believe that light skin signifies beauty. Race plays a role in almost every aspect of life: job placement, marriage, and perception of self. African-Americans who try to lighten their skin complexion are attempting to improve the conditions of their life. Hall recalls the past instances in which people used bleaching creams and remedies. The term, //Hypergamy// is mentioned. Hypergamy is the marriage of two different races, particular an individual of dark skin, and an individual of light skin, not for love’s sake, but in effort to elevate the status of the spouse with darker skin. In the society we live in your status is ranked by the shade of your skin. W.E.B. Dubois’s theory of double consciousness relates to African-Americans living with this bleached ideal. The theory of double-consciousness enables African-Americans to fully assimilate into the society of the dominant race. There is another termed Hall defines, //Oreos//, as they are commonly called are examples of this assimilation because they’re demeanor and character is black on the outside and white on the inside. The author also parallels this issue to the Hindus of India, who have this same issue. In the last portion, the author states his beliefs on how there is a correlation between hypertension and skin color. He concludes by stating that the bleaching syndrome is ultimately a direct reaction to the dominant culture.

__Evaluation: __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Majority portions of the report were clear and well comprehensible. Hall stuck with his thesis; However, I did not understand why he felt the need to write about how hypertension and skin color correlate. It seemed to be unnecessary. It was interesting to see a different culture, and how they respond to the issue of race. This article confirmed the idea that this syndrome initiated from Slavery and Colonization. The issue of Hypergamy is also an issue within the African-American community. The thought that individuals marry only to increase their position in society is ridiculous and troubling, in my opinion. Hall restates that this bleaching syndrome is only a reaction frequently, and throughout the report, illustrated how, drawing references to outside literature such as W.E.B. Dubois and James Baldwin. Other references were to actress, Vanessa Williams. The author was biased because wanted to prove his thesis.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Reflection: __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">I never knew that Oreos was a scholarly term. I can definitely use, and explore how African-Americans respond to a pre-dominantly white society. The issue of assimilation is rampant throughout the African-American community, and explains why. It serves as the “why” piece for my research. I don’t think that I will be able to go in depth on the issues concerning the Hindu culture, but I think it would be nice to highlight the fact that these issues occur with a culture within no close approximation of the US. The hypertension information is not useful. I now want to explore the aspects of how African-Americans assimilate and why would they want to assimilate into a White society. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">**__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Source 3 __** Hall, Ronald. "The Euro-Americanization of Race: Alien Perspective of African Americans Vis-á-Vis Trivialization of Skin Color." //Journal of Black Studies// 26.2 (1995): 172-84. //JSTOR//. Web. 24 Sept. 2010. <http://www.jstor.org/ stable/40027325>.

__Information:__ This source is from the same author of Source 2. Dr. Ronald Hall is a professor in the Social Work Department at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. This is a report recorded in the //Journal of Black Studies//, a prominent source of information in issues concerning the African-American community. The intended audience would have to be a researcher or intrigued reader, due to the fact that the reading level is surpasses your average grade-school child. In the beginning of the report, Hall states that his overall purpose is to enlighten readers on how America’s tarnished or distorted standard of beauty is nothing more than a trickle-down ideal from Europe.

__Summary:__ Hall is strongly convicted of the fact that race issues are a result of the aftermath of “Western domination” (116). Hall then goes on to make inferences of how Greek authors and Western cultures praised the beauty behind black skin. In most cultures, skin color signifies beauty, and isn’t trivial. Race plays a part in “crime…and stereotypes” (118). This did stem from the Atlantic-Slave Trade. After slavery had been abolished, African-Americans were still oppressed concerning education, laws, politics, and other aspects of life all because of the color of their skin. Race is only an issue concerning to inferiority and superiority. Race is such a complex issue and plays a fundamental role in “poverty, education, crime, music, sports, sex, intelligence, etc” (120). Hall hits the nail on the head when he states that, “in America skin color is the determining factor for quality of life” (120). A prime example would be the segregation in America. America was a nation divided. Laws were created which stated that individuals were inferior because their skin color was different from the dominant race. In this source the author also felt the need to make mention of how individuals with darker skin are more frequently accused of committing a crime, that they in fact didn’t commit. Racial profiling is an issue mentioned by Hall. Discrimination even occurs within the race. There are African-Americans who resent those who are lighter, and there are lighter African-Americans who prejudice against their own, who have a darker complexion. Personal accounts are reported of. Skin bleaching is also an act of women in their efforts to obtain a mate.

__Evaluation:__ I did not understand the difference between Western domination and western culture, because it seemed as if Hall contradicted himself. He first spoke on how racial issues are a result of Western domination and colonization, who inflicted Africans with these ideals; however Hall first states that some western cultures praised the splendor of black skin. The Jim Crow Laws prevented African-Americans from becoming better.

__Reflection:__ This source gave me more of an insight of where this entire race issue stemmed from.


 * __Source 4__**

__MLA Citation__ Hill, Mark E. "Skin Color and the Perception of Attractiveness among African Americans Does Gender Make a Difference?" //Social Psychology Quarterly// 65.1 (2002): 77-91. //JSTOR//. Web. 8 Oct. 2010. [|http://www.jstor.org/stable/] [|3090169].

__Information__ This is a report written by Mark E. Hill, an assistant professor in the department of Sociology and Demography at The Pennsylvania State University. In the report Hill’s prime focus is on the theory that the perception of beauty through race affects African-American women more so than men. This is an informational report based off of the information given from a study from the National Survey of Black Americans (NSBA).

__Summary__ Hill’s studies state that based upon research, African-Americans with fairer skin, live better economically. Again the theory that this epidemic all stems from European ideals is mentioned. Due to these supremacist ideals, “Whiteness became identified with all that is civilized, virtuous, and beautiful” (77). On the other hand, blackness was the complete opposite and seen as unattractive, immoral, and destitute. Colorism is a term that is yet to be defined. In this study the author searches for a correlation between skin tone and gender. Hill theorizes that based upon National Survey of Black Americans, that the bias against darker skin impact women more than men. The test resulted in the fact skin does matter concerning Black men but in a different aspect than African-American women. Black men’s, “self-worth does not depend as heavily on their attractiveness” (79). Finally the European ideal is explained. Fair skin was perceived as feminine, and scared, and pure. Black skin went against that image.

__Evaluation__ Something called the “Brown Bag Test” had been mentioned and discussed in my reading that I was completely unaware of. Throughout the report, Hill made references to celebrities who proved his theory; Instances of celebrities such as Lena Horne, and Halle Berry who are or were sex symbols of this time. Hill believes that they would not be as renowned if they were of a darker skin tone. On the other hand, African-American men are seen more masculine if they are darker. I don’t there is a bias, but Hill is trying to prove his overall hypothesis.

__Reflection__ There was a time period in which there was a pride exhibited by African-Americans. This was during the Black Pride Movement. I would like to gain insight as to what were the mindsets of most African-Americans during this movement. Where did it stem from and why did this movement die.

**__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Source 5 __**

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">MLA Citation __

<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Seltzer, Richard, and Robert C. Smith. ".Color Differences in the Afro-American Community and the Differences They Make." <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">//Journal of Black Studies// 21.3 (1991): 279-86. //JSTOR//. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">[].

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Information __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Richard Seltzer is an Associate Professor of Political Sciences at Howard University and Robert C. Smith is also an Associate Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University. He research falls under the area of American and African-American politics. This report depicts how race plays a role in the African-American society and also politics. The report analyzes the importance of color stratification specifically in the African-American community. The intended audience is one doing an informational report at a mature level.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Summary __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">A study was conducted by the National Opinion Research Center (NORC). This survey was conducted in the early 80s. Both Smith and Seltzer concluded that that color difference continue in the African-American community; however, they aren’t very significant in neither the society of African-Americans nor the area of politics. The terms in which race differences was analyzed was based upon ideology, alienation, and civil liberties. The survey resulted in very astounding. African-American individuals, who have the fairest skin complexion, are very likely to complete high school and yield the highest salaries. African-Americans who have the darkest complexions, on the other hand, are less likely to graduate from high school and their salaries are “far below average” (281). These issues concerning race is a result of slavery and the Reconstruction Era. The report concluded that there isn’t any significant difference in skin color among African-Americans as it relates to their personal life or politics.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Evaluation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The results of the survey were cautioned to be perceived as only suggestive and not definitive. The work is not as specific as I would have liked it to be. I believe that the authors could have given more information to strengthen their overall hypothesis. The authors were not bias in presenting their information.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Reflection __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">I believed that this report was very vague, however it touched based on a new topic. This topic gave new insight though. I am very skeptical of how the authors concluded that race doesn’t play a significant role in politics. I completely disagree, if this statement was true, then two years ago, the United States would not have elected their first African-American President, Barack Obama.

**__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Source 6 __** __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">MLA Citation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Edwards, Ozzie L. "Skin Color as a Variable in Racial Attitudes of Black <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Urbanites." //Journal of Black Studies// 3.4 (1973): 473-83. //JSTOR//. Web. 18 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Oct. 2010. [].

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Information __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Ozzie L. Edwards works in the Department of Sociology at the University of Michigan. Edwards is the director, Center for African Studies. This source is an informational report published in a journal from the 70s. This journal and report is intended for mature researched interested in the field of Black Studies.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Summary __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Skin color is significant in the African-American community. Edwards theorizes that because of race, African-Americans who are fair-skinned lead different lives in the categories of family, job occupation, income, and education. Skin color determines your social status. Again the fact that longing to be fair or white impacts the lives of African-American women is stated. Women of color, who have a darker complexion, have difficulty in obtaining jobs in the field that your physical appearance is an important factor because it impacts sales. The terms Octoroon, Quadroon, Mulatto, and Negro are discussed and defined. These terms stem from the 1800s and early 1900s. Again the results from a survey taken depicted how fairer skinned African-Americans lead greater lives than most dark African-Americans. Race not only impacts beauty perception but their economic position. In table two there were results listed of Racial Attitudes and Experiences of African-Americans categorized by the shade of their skin. Edwards concluded that based upon the results, African-Americans of darker complexions, are more aware of racial discrimination and show a greater hostility towards White people than African-Americans of fairer skin.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Evaluation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The information is presented in a well-organized manner. The results correlated with the information given. The tests were also given over a long span of time and from various time periods; therefore are suspicions that there could have been any author bias is eliminated.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Reflection __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt;">A caste system is mentioned in the beginning which is what I believe is an appropriate way to describe skin color is judged within the African-American community. The fact that women of a darker skin tone find it more difficult to secure their employment in fields where their sales depend on their physical beauty is extremely troubling. I was unaware of the fact that darker-skinned African-Americans have a higher hostility towards white people. I would like to research and interview how African-Americans of a darker skin color feel about the issues of races versus the perceptions of fairer African-Americans.

**__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Source 7 __** __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">MLA Citation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Hunter, Margaret L. "'If You're Light You're Alright': Light Skin Color as <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Social Capital for Women of Color." //Gender and Society// 16.2 (2002): 175-93. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">//JSTOR//. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. [3081860].

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Information __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Margaret L. Hunter is an assistant professor of Sociology at Loyola Marymount University in Maryland. Hunter studies and research focuses mainly on the stratification women in the African-American community. This article uses the results of two nationwide surveys to depict and inform a mature audience or researcher of the3 impact and role race plays among both African-Americans and Mexican-American women.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Summary __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The main objective of the report is to examine the issue of race stratification and how it limits the lives of both African-American women and Mexican-American women. The main aspects of life which are greatly impacted are education, salary, and marriage. Hunter believes that the subject of race is not biological, but rather, social. The three essential questions closely relate to the hypothesis, yet to be proven. Hunter questions whether race affects educational attainment; if skin color impacts income; and if race is a determining factor in courting and possibly marriage. Having fair skin is described as possessing social capital or in the specific case of women, beauty. In the world of women, beauty is power. Social capital is defined as, “a form of prestige related to things such as social status, reputation, and social networks” (177). Racial ideals of what beauty is have always been a taboo subject. Based upon the surveys administered, Hunter concluded that based upon her results, women of color with fairer skin, are more privileged in the areas studied.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Evaluation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Hunter makes a profound statement: “Identity is relational and those who are defined as beautiful are only defined as beautiful in relation to other women who are defined as ugly” (178-79). The reason why I believe that this statement is profound is because there isn’t one singular example of beauty. I didn’t need the information pertaining to Mexican-American women. I don’t understand how their background relates to African-American women. The author was not bias but rather tried to prove their hypothesis.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Reflection __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The term colorism has finally been defined in this work. Colorism is a term that describes” the system that privileges the lighter-skinned over the darker skinned within a specific race” (176). Hunter discusses a link between skin color and self-esteem. I am curious to find how women, especially young girls of color feel about their skin color. I am curious to see now how perceptions and ideals of beauty impact African-American women.


 * __Source 8__**

__MLA Citation__ Davis, Kiri. //A Girl like Me//. Third Millennium Foundation, 2005. //Arts Engine//. Web. 8 Oct. 2010. [].

__Information__ Director, Kiri Davis, has quite likely graduated from High School already, but she attended Urban Academy, a NYC public high school where she lives with her mother. Her goal is to develop more projects that will aid her community and give a much needed voice to issues that pertain to people of color. At age sixteen, Davis had already directed her first film, //A Girl like Me//, the video that I am using as a not only a source, but an inspiration for my overall project and documentary, //Color Me Beautiful//.

__Summary__ The film begins with young African-American women of all shades and colors discussing how they’re pressured to look a t specific way and beauty is defined in a way that they must conform to. The women also discuss stereotypes that black women are labeled with such as being loud, having an attitude, having a big butt. This gives black females the feeling that they need to prove themselves. The director then says in a voice over, “at a young age, I already knew the standards for a girl like me” and as she grew older, the standards became more prevalent. The young ladies define what society thinks beauty should be. They begin to discuss hair and how it has to be straight to be considered attractive. Glenda, an interviewee stated that a standard to be lighter is imposed upon African-American females. Jennifer is a darker skinned African-American and admitted to idealizing lighter skin as beauty. The interviewees admitted to knowing someone who used bleaching cream on not only themselves but children. The issue of African-Americans who are of a darker complexion acting out with hostility toward lighter-skinned is discussed. The doll experiment first conducted by Dr. Kenneth Clark in the __Brown v. Board of Education__ case is readapted and done by Davis. 15 out of the 21 children chose the white baby-doll. One of the reasons given by Glenda was that because we have a disconnect with our ancestry due to slavery we don’t know our true identity.

__Evaluation__ Davis did not show any evidence of bias. I believe that the questions she asked the same questions to all of the interviewees. It was a surprise for me so witness how much their responses varied. The opinions were a strong aspect of the entire documentary. The movie was about 7 minutes long, but I wish that there had been more information given. Davis could have given more research that is a credible, so the audience could not only have opinion to take home with them, but fact as well.

__Reflection__ I now have an idea of what to do and what not to do for my documentary. I learned that in order to get a deep response, it would be a good idea to separate interviewees from one another so that they’re unable to feed off of each other’s responses. I don’t think it would be appropriate to use or accept responses from the interviewees that just scrape the surface as well. This source proves that there is a problem among African-American women on the topic of beauty and how they perceive beauty.

**__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Source 9 __**

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">MLA Citation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Hersch, Joni. "Skin-Tone Effects among African Americans: Perceptions and <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Reality." //The American Economic Review// 96.2 (2006): 251-55. //JSTOR//. Web. 28 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Oct. 2010. [].

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Information __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">Joni Hersch is an economist who works in the areas of employment discrimination and empirical law and economics. Her recent research examines skin color discrimination, as well as many other issues faced in our country. Professor Hersch was a Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. She was also Professor of Economics at the University of Wyoming and has been a Visiting Professor of Economics at Northwestern, Caltech, and Duke. This report is written for those studying the topic discussed, and the report is informational.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Summary __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">This source addresses the racial disparities. Skin tone is also addressed. Darker skin is associated with inferiority, and African-Americans being more privileged. Once again the National Survey of Black Americans is used as data along with the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality. Hersch theorizes that African-Americans who have fairer skin possess better job salaries and also attain better education. The data showed how African-Americans with darker skin were seen as less attractive. The theory that African-Americans with fairer skin were less in touch with their African roots was again discussed.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Evaluation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">There are no suspicions of being biased in the NSBA because the only respondents of Survey are African-Americans. The issue of being biased appeared in one of the surveys. The interviewers were thought to be biased against darker skinned individuals. The author did not believe that shade or skin tone of race did not affect employment wages.

__<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Reflection __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt;">This source allowed me to understand the importance of the NSBA is. I want to look it up to understand what it is truly about. I also realize how Pro-Black African-Americans with darker skin seem to be. African-Americans with fair skin are not in touch with their African roots. I want to now make sure that I have a wide span of African-Americans with all shades of brown, in order to gain different perspectives.

<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> ** __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Source 10 __ **<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';"> <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';"> __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">MLA Citation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;">Bodenhorn, Howard. "Colorism, Complexion Homogamy, and Household Wealth: Some Historical Evidence." //American Economic Review// 96.2 (2006): 256-60. //JSTOR//. Web. 28 Oct. 2010. []. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';"> __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Information __ Howard Bodenhorn is Associate Professor of Economics, Lafayette College, and Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. This is an informational report which draws from surveys taken and also history. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Summary __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Bodenhorn makes the profound statement that each person of African-American places a value on him or herself in accordance to how much white blood runs through his veins. He then goes on to define // homogamy //, a term used to describe when fair skinned African-Americans choose to only marry fair skinned Africans-Americans and darker skinned African-Americans do the same thing. Bodenhorn strongly believes that this all stems from colorism in the slavery era. In his piece, Bodenhorn poses two essential questions: How did this theory of an elite group of a race emerge? ; And how does this group continue to thrive? Some history is given on how African-Americans with lighter skin were used to work in the house instead of in the field, during the time of slavery. These fairer skinned slaves were highly regarded. Mullattoes were more likely to live in better economic conditions than African-Americans with darker skin. Mullattoes were also more privileged. The test discussed in the reading explores complexion homogamy. The data resulted in the fact homogamy was a social tool. Complexion homogamy is referred to as a direct result of colorism. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';"> __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Evaluation __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">The author concluded that homogamy is problem plaguing the African-American community. He didn’t appear to be biased, but rather stated facts. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';"> __<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">Reflection __ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">It seems as if an important aspect of this entire colorism issue is marriage. I would like to incorporate this into my documentary, and explore how race plays a significant role in one looking for a mate.