Beautiful in All Ways, Always

The Eurocentric beauty standards was already prominent during the slave trading era, and on the 21st century, skin lightening products were already widespread. (South African College of Applied Psychology, 2018). There is a clear representation of westernized beauty in televisions and other form of medium here in the Philippines. One example for that is the famous Dona Victorina from Jose Rizal’s historical fictions, base on Jr Lopez Gonzalez’ article, she represents an Indio who was colonized by the culture of Spain, followed by American colonizers. The history clearly shows how this colonial mentality brought us the Western xenocentrism that are mainly detrimental among non-Caucasian people, and this issue is still prominent because of what we see in today’s media such as the brand models and celebrities who are promoting skin-whitening products and weight loss prescribed drugs.
We need to stop this in our own way and empower those people who are suffering from the western standards and what built in our society today. A person does not need a fairer and flawless skin, straighter hair, and slimmer body shape. We would like to build confidence and provide a friendly environment among people who once felt insecure and undesirable because of their physical appearance.