meagan-solomon
Group members: Meagan Solomon, Antwanette Taylor, and Mariela Villa
Title: "Black Is Beautiful"
Topic/Argument: Under the category of "Body Sexual Politics: Gender and Beauty," our group is arguing that Eurocentric beauty standards are harmful for women of color because whiteness is seen as the default beauty standard in popular culture, mainstream media, and the workplace, leaving black girls and women with a negative self-image. Our project focuses specifically on black women who resist white standards and embrace their own beauty. Although Eurocentric beauty standards may reign in the current social platform, there are continued efforts to overcome these standards and create a more all-inclusive perception of beauty. Instilling the notion that "everything is beautiful," including "black is beautiful," over the dominant belief that only "white is beautiful" is imperative in unifying our country and bettering our culture. Natural, big hair is sexy, and all shades on the skin color spectrum are beautiful.
To give context to our argument, we will begin our video project with this GIF from MTV Decoded that gives a brief definition of what white beauty standards are. The video that this GIF is from is too long to attach, and it is not possible to only link a portion of the video, so our video will utilize background music and a voice over that reads it. The music we utilize will produce a feeling of urgency for viewers and the tone of the voice over will be clear and engaging, not monotone.
This GIF will accompany the first in the definition portion of our video with the same background music and voice over that reads it.
After the definition portion, our video will transition to discuss white beauty standards in popular culture with this image. There will be background music that transitions into a more concerning/solemn sound with an accompanied voice over for this image with a statement about how white beauty standards are imposed on black girls from a young age through popular culture, including dolls.
This image of Taylor Swift will transition from the previous image with a continuation of the background music and a voice over to discuss how white artists are often celebrated as the ideal, while black artists do not receive the same level of recognition. We will describe how this lack of representation can hurt a young black girl's self-image using a tone that is both concerned and urgent.
The video will then transition to this image of double standards between white women and black women, which illustrates how certain characteristics are lauded on white women and criticized on black women. There will be a continuation of background music that moves from a solemn tone to sound more critical with a voice over that describes these double standards and how they impact a young black girls' image of herself and her worth.
Transitioning from the section of the video about popular culture will be the next section focused on mainstream media and how it also perpetuates white beauty standards. Concerning background music will continue to accompany this image as it appears on screen with a voice over to introduce the mainstream media section.
This beauty ad will transition from the previous image alongside other beauty ads that perpetuate Eurocentric standards as the default. There will be a continuation of background music and a voice over that uses a tone that is both critical and concerned to describe the negative impact of beauty ads on young black girls when the word "beauty" is predominantly paired with white women.
This beauty ad will be on the screen at the same time as the other beauty ads with the same music and voice over describing how beauty ads often feature white women as their main subjects to represent beauty.
This collage of magazine covers will transition from the previous images of beauty ads with a continuation of background music and a voice over to continue the explanation of how these ads are harmful for young black girls when all they see in popular culture are the words "beauty" and "beautiful" next to images of white women with straight hair.
After the section about mainstream media, the video will transition to the last section about white beauty standards in the workplace. This image will appear on screen with background music that sounds more pressing and a voice over that has a critical tone to describe how this is a common belief held by employers, which is discriminatory toward African-American women and imposes unfair standards of beauty and professionalism.
After the previous image, the video will transition to this quote by a black woman yearning for acceptance in the corporate world. This image will appear on screen with background music that evokes concern and a voice over that describes this perspective and how unfair treatment in the workplace produces this desire for acceptance.
After the image of the quote, the video will transition to this image that portrays the expectation for black women to straighten their curls rather than leave them natural. The image will have the continuation of background music and a voice over to accompany it with an explanation of how this devalues black women and imposes whiteness as the professional standard.
After the section about workplace, the video will transition to the conclusion about black women resisting unfair Eurocentric beauty standards. This image will appear with more upbeat background music and a voice over that describes how natural hair should be accepted, not condemned.
Continuing in this section, this photo will transition from the previous one with the same upbeat background music, with a focus on the images without a voice over.
This image will appear in the video after the last with the same upbeat background music and no voice over so viewers can focus on the image and the message.
This image will appear after the last with a continuation of upbeat background music and no voice over.
This image will appear last in the video with the upbeat background music ending on an impactful, dramatic note and the video will fade out slowly into black as a collective voice over reads these words.
