Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
SKIMS, Kim Kardashian’s fashion label, recently debuted a new campaign for their Cotton Collection featuring Bronx-born rapper Cardi B. Images released on Instagram by the artist and the brand show the “Bongos” rapper in curve-hugging apparel. SKIMS, which bills itself as “setting new standards by providing solutions for every body,” specializes in these form-fitting garments. The brand’s emphasis on body-gripping clothing makes sense considering that its co-founder rose to celebrity in part thanks to the way global society has lauded Kim Kardashian’s physique, specifically her posterior, over the last two decades.
However, the undeniable affluence that Kim Kardashian has amassed, even as she and her siblings become thinner and conform to prevailing ideals of beauty, often fails to extend to the demographic that has historically been associated with voluptuous derrieres: Black women. The media industry and beauty culture generate profit from their aesthetics, while Black women bear pernicious assault.
As an expert in Black women and popular media, I call this exploitation the “Booty Paradox.”
While Cardi B’s feature in the SKIMS campaign is significant, it also highlights the fact that inclusion tends to disproportionately favor women with light skin or mixed-race heritage, perpetuating colorism and texturism. Sociologist Margaret Hunter found that lighter Black women earn more, creating severe economic disparities between light- and dark-skinned Black women. The skin bleaching, cosmetic surgery and fashion industries profit from these “skin color hierarchies,” which may explain why SKIMS’ leading lady of color, Emma Grede, is mixed-race Caribbean.
Furthermore, while Cardi B frequently celebrates the size of her buttocks in…
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