[A.C.C.]

When Latinos, blacks and Asians dye their hair an obviously fake blond, or wear obviously phony blue contacts, is there any explanation for this, other than wishing to appear more “white” and rejecting or being ashamed of their own background? Do they really think they’re fooling anyone?

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Name : A.C.C., Race : Mexican and American Indian, City : W Lafayette, State : IN, Country : United States, Occupation : Grad student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, 

[powell]

Most people who I have talked to say the reason they dye their hair or put in different colored contacts is that they are bored or they want variety. And on a surface level, I see their point. However, there is a consistent “lightening” of people of color, and on a larger scale the perception is that they want to be white. I don’t believe most people who dye their hair or put in blue contacts think about the implications of rejecting their original color and selling out for whiteness.

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Name : powell, Gender : M, Race : Asian, Age : 24, City : Madison, State : WI, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, 

[ED25460]

No, there is no other explanation, and the only people they’re fooling are themselves. You don’t see naturally blue-eyed blonds dying their hair black and wearing brown contacts, do you? Unfortunately, many non-white folks have internalized the white beauty standard they see in magazines and on television (look at RuPaul; yikes!), and will never believe that their brown skin and dark hair are beautiful. I’m glad I’m not one of them.

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Name : ED25460, Gender : F, Age : 42, City : Kansas City, State : MO, Country : United States, Education level : 2 Years of College, 

[Orleanas]

God knows I’ve seen a few of them with hazel and green eyes and blond hair when the color obviously isn’t natural. I often wonder who they think they’re fooling, but I think I’ve come to realize this is the same case as bald men with comb-overs. They know they are bald but want to fool others by doing that nonsense. In the end they only fool themselves and look pathetic. As to the ones with the fake eye and hair colors, they freak and gross me out because they look like they have cataracts and have been infested by a new form of hair fungus.

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Name : Orleanas, Gender : F, Age : 20, City : Boston, State : MA, Country : United States, Occupation : Student, 

[Mark]

You know, I’d sound like a racist idiot if I suggested that all the white people laying out on the beach to get a tan were somehow rejecting or ashamed of their “white heritage.” I guess in my less-sinister world view, the clothes people wear, the music they listen to, the people they associate with and the look they go for are assumed to be a matter of personal tastes; and the fact that for some individuals, those tastes happen to take them outside the “norm” for their “group” (however you choose to define that) is a pretty thin basis for assuming that this somehow represents a rejection of membership in that group.

Sometimes it almost seems as if people develop a siege mentality on sensitive issues like race, religion and politics – kind of a “If you’re not for us then you’re against us” attitude. I’m certain the thought process of the overwhelming majority of non-whites who dye their hair blond is exactly the same as that of white brunettes – something along the lines of “Hey, this might be a good look for me, I think I’ll try it.”

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Name : Mark, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 32, City : Alexandria, State : VA, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[ACC25090]

Mark: Would you also claim that no white kids who “dress black” or wear their hair in dreadlocks are rejecting their “whiteness”? Talk to them, many say that’s exactly why they do it. If you think race/ethnicity doesn’t affect many of the choices we all make, you are either incredibly naive or willfully blind. Your childish name-calling also doesn’t reflect well on you. Once again, the editor of Y? Forum has held a white to a lower standard of behavior than the rest of us.

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Name : ACC25090, Race : Mexican and American Indian, City : San Antonio, State : TX, Country : United States, Occupation : Grad student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, 

[Uche]

I think that non-white people bleaching their hair blond and wearing blue contacts is just as bad as white people bleaching their hair. And you must notice when they do, and it looks just as fake and awful.

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Name : Uche, City : Cambridge, State : MA, Country : United States, 

[Lucy H]

This issue of people of color dying their hair blond has definitly sparked a debate. Personally, I think people should be able to dye their hair whatever color they want, it’s theirs, they grew it. They can do what they want with it. Several years ago, when I was working at a hardware store, we had a debate over the same issue. One of guys who worked there, who was black, bleached his hair blond. We all thought it looked cool, but managment told him he had to dye it back or shave it off because it was an un-natural color. So all of the natural blonds in the store took exception to this and reminded management that blond was a natural hair color. Management said the guy still had to change his hair back because blond was not a natural color for him. So all of the older women who dye their hair to get rid of the grey went to management and asked if they would also have to let their hair go back to its natural grey also. Management said of course not. So only this guy had to change his hair. We had a little old blue-haired retired lady working there, and she told him to dye it blue like hers. So he did, and the blue-haired lady took him up to management and introduced him as her son, and told them that blue hair ran in their family. Management finally left the issue alone.

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Name : Lucy H, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Age : 24, City : San Jose, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[D.G. Brown]

I am a brunette, though I have been known to dye my hair blond. This isn’t to say I am forsaking brunettes everywhere. I just like a change from time to time. A large portion of my friends are Asian and many of color their hair and use colored contacts. Why? The same reason I do. It’s to get attention. How complicated is that? I’m sure that is true for just about everyone who has participated in changing hair and eye color. If you are Asian, black or Hispanic, especially if you live in a community with a large population of that race, you’re surrounded by a lot of people with black/dark brown hair and brown eyes. An easy way to draw attention to yourself in that case is to change that. Blue or green contacts draw in the occasional double-take and following question. The blond hair just asks for attention.

C’mon people, don’t make fashion statements out to be anything other than that. Not everyone is trying to be political.

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Name : D.G. Brown, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 19, City : Tigard, State : OR, Country : United States, Occupation : College Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[James]

You are wrong on three points. First, you assume everyone necessarily equates style with racial identity. Sometimes a hairstyle is just a hairstyle. And as for ‘kids’ – even a decision to ‘dress/talk/act black/white’ is almost by definition a style choice because what other kind of choice is a kid going to make? It is not a choice of one racial identity over the other, but a part of the process of building an individual identity one piece at a time from the various facades they will try on. Second, you seem to believe in a set of appearance and behavior characteristics that are not just common among, but defining of members of various ethnic groups. Your use of terms like ‘whiteness’ or ‘act black’ is suggestive of the expectation that people define themselves according to one of your racial stereotypes and that they strictly adhere to the stereotype characteristics. There is nothing about being of any ethnic background that inherently ties one to any set of beliefs or behavioral characteristics, and to imply otherwise – to assert the requirement for loyal conformance to standards over the individual right to self-determination is wrong. Thirdly, as for ‘childish name-calling,’ I’m afraid I have no idea what you’re talking about. It seems to me that you’re the only one calling names here. I am not so ‘naive’ that I don’t know what you mean when you say ‘act black.’ I am not so ‘willfully blind’ as to believe there aren’t people who intentionally choose to ‘act white/black.’ That is entirely their own business, and I am certainly not so arrogant as to tell them how to live their lives. What do you think gives you the right to expect others to conform to the You should not condemn people who have chosen a style not typically associated with their ethnic background nor assume they have rejected their ‘racial identity’

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Name : James, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 32, City : Alexandria, State : VA, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

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