Professor Maggie Hunter is giving a talk in the Provost’s lecture series this Wednesday at 12:00 noon in the Faculty Lounge in Rothwell (behind the TeaShop).
"Skin Bleaching and Cosmetic Surgery in a Globalized World."
The use of skin-bleaching creams is on the rise throughout the Global South and cosmetic surgery has increased dramatically among people of color in wealthy countries. Public discourse, however, is fraught with tension over these manipulations of the body. This paper examines three competing discourses: 1) beauty discourse, based on the mass-marketing of whitening products and multi-million dollar celebrity endorsements, 2) public health discourse, designed to dissuade potential skin-bleachers by focusing on the physical dangers of bleaching, and often neglecting the social imperatives of whiteness and 3) cosmetic surgery discourse, created to sell cosmetic surgery to the new and growing “ethnic” market by easing racial fears and anxieties.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
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