Answer to Question #219538 in English for Cattleya

Question

What is the impact of social media on racism? (125 words)

Answer 1

Racism is an instrument in the generation of conflict, the fomenting of exclusivist nationalism, and a motor for the disintegration of states and slaughter among neighbors. A few days ago, Pakistani clothing brand Sana Safinaz got in trouble for its ‘racist campaign involving the Maasai tribe of Kenya on social media. A popular morning show, Jago Pakistan Jago, recently hosted a bridal makeup contest. To make the challenge a little difficult, they asked MUAs to turn dusky models into beautiful brides. As if implying “dark is not beautiful” wasn’t outrageous enough, the show called fair models to represent them instead of simply calling dark-skinned models. The shoemakers decided to paint their faces brown, and the make-up artists were challenged to choose fitting eye shadows, lip color, and contouring. The show was televised Live on Pakistan’s leading channel, Hum TV. The show’s mentors Amber and Farida reportedly used terms like ‘Habshi’ or ‘Habshan,’ ‘Makrani’ and ‘Negro’ liberally during the episode, Images by Dawn reported. “I’ve done the makeover of so many brides, but I’ve never had such a bride, like a Habshan, ever. But you are being presented with this challenge,” the report quoted Amber. People on social media were shocked to see the ugly racism being televised without any refrain and lambasted the showrunners for its tasteless mentality. Many also argued that the lack of representation of dusky skin is the root cause of a major problem in the Pakistani entertainment industry. Others slammed the makers for promoting prejudices and reinforcing the fact that there is no space for dark-skinned models in the glamour world.