YELLOW bone is a term that gets a lot of black men excited about their fantasies. While it is not clear where the the name comes from, the term it is a term used describes light skinned black women, who are generally preferred over their darker skinned counterparts by men.
According to urbandictionary.com, a yellow bone is “the lightest type of light skinned black female”.
Port Elizabeth based online behaviour expert, Ramon Thomas said the phe nomenon about light skinned women being “better” than dark skinned women determined which part of the world you were in. He said in many African countries there were not as many light skinned women so it was not possible to the opportunity to choose was not available.
“This has been the case for over 300 years. In rural areas this is not really an issue, it does not really matter at all,” he said. “But in the city people are inundated with media. Now every magazine you read or television show that you watch, you will find that the women portrayed there are light skinned and thin with long flowing hair, and that is what is portrayed as beau tiful. I think it is a misguided belief that the lighter the woman, the better.”
Thomas said even the most popular black female celebrities were light skinned. “This also applies in the US. Women like Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys and Beyonce are all light skinned women and are very popular,” he added.
He said with the advent of social media this stereotype was being perpetuated be cause social media is driven by images.
Musician Nomasonto Mnisi, aka Mshoza, has been criticised by many South African women for bleaching her skin. Her mining tycoon ex-husband Jacob Mnisi was funding the procedure.
The Kortes singer also went under the knife for cosmetic procedures including a nose job, breast augmentation and a tummy tuck.
A national magazine quoted her saying she was “tired of being ugly” and wanted to be “Christina Aguilera white”.
Another celebrity that has apparently also bleached her skin, though on a smaller scale, is Bonang Matheba.
Saturday Dispatch took the topic to Face book to get feedback from readers.
Bandile Magibili implied that yellow bones are better because it is “easier to see them in the dark”.
Princess Nkabane-Mthembu echoed Thomas’ words saying this stereotype has been passed down from generation to generation.
“It would seem that light skin is beautiful and light skinned women have better chances of attracting husbands and life is easier,” she said. “Dark skinned sistas instead get shunned, when in fact they too are just as beautiful. Funny how this is not the case with men, just women.”
The Dispatch took to the streets to ask men in East London if they preferred yellow bones.
Almost 60% of the 140 men asked yesterday said they would pick a yellow bone over a dark skinned woman any day. —
Lighter skins preferred
According to urbandictionary.com, a yellow bone is “the lightest type of light skinned black female”.
Port Elizabeth based online behaviour expert, Ramon Thomas said the phe nomenon about light skinned women being “better” than dark skinned women determined which part of the world you were in. He said in many African countries there were not as many light skinned women so it was not possible to the opportunity to choose was not available.
“This has been the case for over 300 years. In rural areas this is not really an issue, it does not really matter at all,” he said. “But in the city people are inundated with media. Now every magazine you read or television show that you watch, you will find that the women portrayed there are light skinned and thin with long flowing hair, and that is what is portrayed as beau tiful. I think it is a misguided belief that the lighter the woman, the better.”
Thomas said even the most popular black female celebrities were light skinned. “This also applies in the US. Women like Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys and Beyonce are all light skinned women and are very popular,” he added.
He said with the advent of social media this stereotype was being perpetuated be cause social media is driven by images.
Musician Nomasonto Mnisi, aka Mshoza, has been criticised by many South African women for bleaching her skin. Her mining tycoon ex-husband Jacob Mnisi was funding the procedure.
The Kortes singer also went under the knife for cosmetic procedures including a nose job, breast augmentation and a tummy tuck.
A national magazine quoted her saying she was “tired of being ugly” and wanted to be “Christina Aguilera white”.
Another celebrity that has apparently also bleached her skin, though on a smaller scale, is Bonang Matheba.
Saturday Dispatch took the topic to Face book to get feedback from readers.
Bandile Magibili implied that yellow bones are better because it is “easier to see them in the dark”.
Princess Nkabane-Mthembu echoed Thomas’ words saying this stereotype has been passed down from generation to generation.
“It would seem that light skin is beautiful and light skinned women have better chances of attracting husbands and life is easier,” she said. “Dark skinned sistas instead get shunned, when in fact they too are just as beautiful. Funny how this is not the case with men, just women.”
The Dispatch took to the streets to ask men in East London if they preferred yellow bones.
Almost 60% of the 140 men asked yesterday said they would pick a yellow bone over a dark skinned woman any day. —
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