I sat in one corner of the room, wanting to look away but unable to. No, what was more important was the color of the edges of her ears. Because it is believed that if the corner of the ears is dark upon birth, the child will be dark-skinned. And whatever reason, this was not the desired outcome. The texture of her hair was the least of their worries. Not enough time had passed to determine the “grade” of her hair because it all “started out good.” But even if it wasn’t good, they determined that it could be permed. These dark-skinned older women checked her ears and now huddled together with fingers pressed to their lips, deciding amongst themselves whether she would be light-skinned or dark-skinned. Ensuring that all that was needed to sustain life was in place and functioning properly was not their aim.Įyes that initially glistened with delight at the announcement of her birth quickly turned to microscopic lenses. Hands that had held her close now pulled and turned her body to get a better view. The gleeful laughter had turned to whispers. The women who gathered around her were not checking for 10 fingers and 10 toes. I didn’t want a hand in this death of individuality. Right before my eyes, my niece was being transformed from a baby to a Black baby. I was asked to come and see for myself whether she would be light- or dark-skinned. I recoiled. With the same ease taken as when one inspects fruit for purchase, the corners of my niece’s ears were examined to determine the color of her skin. We had discussed the time of her birth, her weight, her beauty and whether she favored her father or mother most. But then the conversation took an awful turn. My sister had gone into labor prematurely, and we had missed the birth. Excited to meet our newest family member, I rushed to my sister’s recovery room to look into the eyes of the child who had made me an aunt on Christmas day.īy the time I arrived, my mother and her friends were already in the room. They were looking the new baby over.Īs a child, I had seen it done countless times and thought nothing of it. But now as an adult, the primacy that it took sickened me. Her admission of a sad reality often whispered about and kept secret reminded me of my own experience – though my family is far from being royal. He would not be protected from racism either. In addition, the first-time parents learned that their son would not be given a title or security. If the latter, then there were “concerns.” In the interview, Markle says that the royal family discussed whether or not their son Archie, who had not been born yet, would be dark-skinned. They didn’t name names, but the admission alone caused audible gasps from Winfrey. Meghan Markle and her husband, Prince Harry, accused the royal family of racism in an explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Newly born black baby