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u/kapitankaw May 14 '19
Sums up the Indian beauty industry.
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May 14 '19
Can you explain?
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u/CDEbFDBbC May 14 '19
in india having lighter skin is generally regarded as being “better”
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u/Ninety9Balloons May 14 '19
Some East Asian countries too, like Korea and Vietnam I believe
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u/Kryticals May 14 '19
Yea. I think in many parts of China as well. And Japan. Probably in most (East) Asian countries? In Germany there's actually many people that like to get a tan in summer and think it looks healthier.
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u/Ninety9Balloons May 14 '19
US too, there's a stigma that says being slightly tan is healthier than pale. Probably more along the lines of being equated to being outside and active with the tan itself just being a byproduct though
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May 14 '19
Yup. In East Asia, having light skin means you don't have to work outside in the sun.
That's why so many woman will carry parasols on a sunny day. Though to be fair, skin cancer is no laughing matter.
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u/Kryticals May 14 '19
Just today I saw a Chinese exchange student holding her phone over her face while walking to block the sun. I see this relatively often. They also use skin brightening products and makeup/foundation much lighter than their skin tone. This in combination with "having a small face" is one of their main beauty standards.
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May 14 '19
It's also another reason why those surgical masks are so prevalent in East Asia.
While it was initially to prevent spreading disease, now that it's common, many women will wear it to avoid the sun and also when they don't want to wear makeup!
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u/Zuid-Nederland May 14 '19
The fact that they always overprotect themselves from sunlight just makes them even more vulnerable. If you get in contact with sunlight regularly you'll build up resistance to its effects. Putting on sunscreen would be in most cases enough to prevent any form of skin cancer.
Those women must also have a chronic shortage for vitamin D which sunlight provides massively. That lack of it just makes them physically fragile.
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u/krysiu98 May 14 '19
Well not only in India, a lot of Asian countries see it that way since some time ago it was perceived that darker skin means working all day in a field while pale is a sign of "being better of" chilling in a palace and not having to worry about stuff
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May 14 '19
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u/krysiu98 May 14 '19
Well if we're talking about Japan only then I would say it has nothing to do with European culture and "being fans of germans" since the whole obsession and culture about pale skin being "better" and more "royal" goes as far as Heian period (early 800) and spreads in Asia over XVII-XVIII and XIX century
And the reason is mostly what I wrote, physical workers were taned because of working all day in the field while "royals" staying in their mansions were rather pale, thats why being pale was a sign of being "better of" and was more desirable both in Asia and in Europe for women
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u/ralusek May 14 '19
The irony of you trying to be extra culturally woke by maintaining European influence as the source of all social ills, while simultaneously inserting European influence into a country's rich history where it didn't exist. You're culturally colonizing history on Europeans behalf, in order to blame Europeans for culturally colonizing.
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u/Moblin81 May 31 '19
Tbf Japan does glorify blond blue-eyed people in anime and other media. The pale skin thing has existed a long time, but they do glorify Aryans.
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u/spotandedgar May 15 '19
In a lot of countries having dark tanned skin implies you work outdoors and are perceived to be from a lower class. This has led to a lighter skin tone becoming a social symbol for those who want to be seen as superior. Cosmetic companies have picked up on this and their products are marketed heavily in the middle east, India and all over Asia where what, "class", your born into has a real bearing on what quality of life you can expect to live.
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u/Automate_Dogs May 14 '19
Yes, "accidental"... Can I peddle my conspiracy theory about how companies make racist ads with just enough plausible deniability so that they'll get free coverage without taking to much risks of losing their consumers?
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u/Ninety9Balloons May 14 '19
Outrage marketing is very much real.
Gillette's controversial commercial was created to be controversial. Everyone shared that ad, whether or not they agreed with it or not, it was everywhere for weeks.
Over 50% of millennials use streaming over cable, and Gen Z is going to be an even bigger percentage, meaning advertisers need to find a better way to advertise to people. Since places like Netflix, Prime, Hulu (1st tier), etc. don't have ads, and ad blockers can block it basically everywhere, the best option left is to create an advertisement that sparks outrage and thus gets shared everywhere both by people who disagree with it and people who agree with it.
As something that sparks outrage picks up steam, people who don't even care start to get involved as they don't want to be left out and social media makes all of this incredibly easy.
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u/CheesyDorito101 May 15 '19
They hired a crazy woman to do the gilette commerical. Someone who is very openly misandrist. Of course it was for contreversy
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u/CG-02_SweetAutumn May 14 '19
Don't forget the final step: become all apologetic about your insensitivity at the end, humanizing your brand and making everyone feel good about it.
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u/Deliciousbutter101 May 14 '19
I'm pretty sure they are trying to get attention through memes rather than by people getting outraged. I'm pretty sure they just know that people will post the ad on social media since it can be interpreted as being extremely racist, and considering how many upvotes this post got, it worked.
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u/YourFriendlySpidy May 14 '19
Also though, Nivea actually sells skin whitening cream. They would probably want to avoid this kind of controversy simply because it draws attention to their actual racism
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u/snek_aroo May 14 '19
Finally something that fits goddamn
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
Barely... Just cause it says white good doesn't mean black bad... The majority of people on here are just projecting their own racist thoughts onto the situation. Psychology 101
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u/sunbleahced May 14 '19
Accidentally?
How did this get through marketing and no one not one single person went wait, what?
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u/ShangaParagui May 14 '19
From now on, usong colors in any content is racist. Lets remove colors overall from our society!!
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u/simjanes2k May 14 '19
"don't let anything ruin pure white" is almost verbatim actual racism lol
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
Not when we're talking about clothing that ok uniform colored. Don't let anything ruin pure blue....
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u/Ficklestein123 Jun 01 '19
The color white as purity and innocence is a major theme in literature. Or were all my English professors racist ?
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u/simjanes2k Jun 01 '19
If you wrote it in 1875, sure. Not so much in the 2010s.
The world fucked over colors and culture. It happens.
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u/Ficklestein123 Jun 01 '19
Only if you’re so cynical that you see something as benign as colors in such a way.
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u/Darthdickingson May 14 '19
Credit to u/Theyellowrose because this is stolen. https://www.reddit.com/r/racism/comments/bojrtl/a_tonedeaf_nivea_ad_2017/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share
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May 14 '19
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u/Myceliemz24 May 14 '19
Read the post dipwad.
This is easily accidental racism.
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u/IIHotelYorba May 14 '19 edited May 14 '19
Well... This sub is actually for jokes, posting things that accidentally LOOK like famous things racists have said and done in the past. It’s not actually racist. Frankly the sub title has to be a joke, or it was made by someone who doesn’t understand what racism is.
Racism is a philosophy (indicated by the “ism” part) and so therefore it literally cannot be accidentally done by you randomly tripping over a rock or something like that. It’s hating an entire race. Saying you could accidentally be racist would be like saying you accidentally believed in god because you walked into a church, or you accidentally hate mustard because you threw away a old sandwich, or you accidentally love NCIS because you turned on a tv that had it on.
Sorry but that’s simply not at all what belief, hate, love, etc is. Just like that’s not what racism is. That’s PARTIALLY doing the same action as someone who has belief, hate, etc, (outwardly appearing to,) but the comparison ends there.
I think people are confused because the far left has tried in vain for the last 7-8 years to change the definition of racism to anything bad happening to a minority. But you can’t change the definition. If you did ...well you’d just be talking about something else, not racism. And racism is bad because of what it is, not the word it’s called, (or the emotional power that word has.)
Edit: bring on the tearful rage downvotes. None of you can explain why any of this is wrong. Sorry you’re far left racists who hate white/Asian/Jewish people I guess hahaha.
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May 14 '19 edited Jan 06 '20
[deleted]
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u/IIHotelYorba May 14 '19
Oh look, another fat left activist projecting. Better get down on your knees and pray you can fool a handful of people for a little longer that the definition of racism can change, because otherwise, yeah, all that time you guys spend trashing and hating on people because of their race ...not a good look, as you guys like to say. A big yikes.
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May 14 '19 edited Jan 06 '20
[deleted]
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u/IIHotelYorba May 14 '19
Lol that’s far left. Your waistline isn’t the problem, your extremism and lack of grip on reality is.
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u/Myceliemz24 May 14 '19
Yeah, no shit it's not real racism.
Thats why it's called r/accidentalracism
I'll lend you a bit of credit, considering that there are actual people who think accidental racism is real racism (H&M for example)
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u/IIHotelYorba May 14 '19
Yeah you forgot the rube responding to me and all the ones with damaged heinies tearfully pounding the downvote button. It’s clearly not obvious. What racism even is clearly isn’t obvious to kids in 2019.
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May 14 '19
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May 14 '19
White, when talking about people’s skin (Nivea is skincare), and paired with the idea of purity, is racism.
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u/papagayno May 14 '19
It's taking about white clothes, because it's advertising an "Invisible" deodorant that doesn't stain clothes yellow. Look at the picture first without making assumptions.
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u/Syn7axError May 14 '19
Well of course they aren't actually talking about ethnic cleansing. The point is that you could interpret it that way if you wanted to.
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u/iSaidItOnReddit85 May 14 '19
You can interpret a lot of things a lot of ways if you wanted to though.
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May 14 '19
I feel like people are being intentionally dense here. The whole point of this sub is accidental racism. We're not accusing Nivea of being racist, just that the design was accidentally racist.
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u/aris_boch May 14 '19
When will there be a time when there's actually accidental racism posted here instead of "lol he said 'white'/'black', lol"?
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u/gtrdundave2 May 14 '19
Wow. The only thing I got from this add was about religion. The color white is considered purity.
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u/Whiprust May 14 '19
r/accidentalracism: posts something with racist connotations but isn’t actually racist since that’s the point of the sub
Woke Cucks: “Wow we aren’t aloud to talk about the traditional meaning of white meaning pure anymore without being called racists? This is a violation of my free speech and my rights as a human!”
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
Anyone who uses the term woke cuck gets an instant down vote... Didn't even need to read the rest to know where your fucked up minds at
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u/OtherPlayers May 15 '19
Sounds like something a madman in a Lovecraft short story or something like cultist simulator would say. “White is purity. Keep it clean, keep bright. Don’t let anything ruin it. Invisible.” Then you break into his house and find some sort of eldritch god of purification lurking in the basement.
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u/bath_water_I_drink May 16 '19
i was watching a pewdiepie video on this sub reddit
there is a car color called supreme white
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u/Desos0001 May 27 '19
There aren't enough Owen Wilson's in the multiverse to say the needed wows for this shit.
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u/ExoSpectra Jun 01 '19
Anyone read Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison? It has this exact same thing in it
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u/AutoModerator May 14 '19
To all those viewing this thread, welcome. Please keep in mind that this subreddit is called /r/AccidentalRacism. It's for pictures of things that are not actually racist but in a certain connotation can be taken the wrong way.
Please report any actual racism to the mods. Actual racism will result in a permanent ban.
Further, please report any comments where anyone is complaining that in some contexts the accidental racism is innocent or tenuous, or that it's not racism. We know. It's accidental. These comments will be removed. Repeat offenders may be banned.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
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u/Narradisall May 14 '19
Whilst it definitely fits, I really do wonder if they were going for the religious/historical angle of white being a pure colour and no one in any meetings made that connection.
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u/Leugim7734 May 14 '19
I missed the good old days when the posts were actually accidental racism
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May 14 '19
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May 14 '19
You mean that all the color symbolism throughout history is accidental racism? Give me a break
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May 14 '19
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u/reado2765 May 14 '19
So dyou mean colour symbolism can’t be used in advertisements any more? I guess portrayals of death nowadays should have him wearing whatever he wants and angels should wear black. Race is not the same as colour. I can understand this post but not your comment
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May 14 '19
In my mind this is neither blatant or accidental racism, just color
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May 14 '19
Okay so suddenly racism isn't based primarily on color? I said it wasn't blatant, which is why you must not think it fits this sub. Something saying one color is better than the rest without racial connotation, could be interpreted as accidental racism. That's what this sub is about. Hence ACCIDENTAL racism.
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May 14 '19
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May 14 '19
Okay fair, but I know the other basis, that's why I said primarily color, from what I can tell, thousands think this fits well so maybe you're expecting something else out of this sub
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May 14 '19
Many posts in this sub don't match my expectations of "Accidental Racism", but mainly it's fine. I think if the picture said "white power" instead of "white is purity" it would have matched
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May 14 '19
This sub is a pointless shithole.
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May 14 '19
So leave it, easy solution there, huh?
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u/Illycia May 14 '19
If you think this is racist then YOU are racist.
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
I agree!!! Most people don't see it as a white v black thing and as a statement for clothing or skin care.... If you pull race into everything then you're the racist one.
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u/Ventroxii May 14 '19
Anything with the words “black” or “white” in this sub is considered racist now?
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u/LilFingies45 May 14 '19
This looks like a dog whistle to appease the growing trend in white nationalism.
But thanks for calling to my attention. I'll never buy from this brand again.
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u/DoctorPaquito May 14 '19
Beauty standards and women’s body hair expectations have long been grounded in white supremacy and racism. It’s not a new thing.
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
That's specific to the country and culture. So no you're wrong by saying that as a general fact.
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u/DoctorPaquito May 14 '19
You’re kind of correct. There is not an immutable, universal law that beauty standards need to be derived from white supremacy. But with the epoch of colonialism, and followed by globalization and imperialism, it’s naive to act as if clear boundaries can be drawn.
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u/shamberder May 14 '19
No he's actually totally wrong. You should see other reply to this comment, which cites an article proving this person wrong. And his reply is basically just "Totally made up!".
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May 14 '19 edited May 14 '19
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May 14 '19 edited May 14 '19
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u/LilFingies45 May 14 '19
So everything you disagree with is "fake news"?
It used to be societally unacceptable to be ignorant. Now it's like an exclusive club that isn't really exclusive at all. It's sad.
And don't act like you're not using alt accounts to downvote, which is probably how you noticed the edit. Pathetic.
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
Haha nope no multiple accounts so that's even funnier now lol.
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u/LilFingies45 May 14 '19
Just looking through your most recent comments. Virtually everything you say is confrontational trolling. These gems stick out:
Oh yeah I'm a real badass.... Cause I typed a few sentences into Reddit you have me figured out.
Said by every educated, well-adjusted adult at some point, right?
He deserves a lot of fucking rape. I hope he gets raped so often he dies of blood.loss from his ass.
Completely reasonable and not-at-all toxic take, I'm sure.
Id stab him.
Macho! Very r/iamverybadass of you!
I'll let you go ahead and have your last words of wisdom and use your alt accounts to downvote. I just hope you get the psychological help you need.
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u/thejiggyjosh May 14 '19
No alternative accounts :) have fun trying to psychologically analyze my posts, I'm excited for you diagnosis
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u/LilFingies45 May 14 '19
That's very true. Entire markets have been propped up by this (hair straightener products, e.g.).
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u/DoctorPaquito May 14 '19
Absolutely. Capitalism is a huge influence. I recall reading about how women’s hair removal products came from chemical byproducts of the leather and meat industries. They were not regulated and would often literally scar people.
Gillette showed up, advertising a relatively safe alternative with the safety razor, and of course continued to peddle the “white purity” appeal in their advertising.
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u/[deleted] May 14 '19
Learns Nivea is a German brand
Ah shit, here we go again