There was a time when one of the most attractive and untouched qualities about a woman was the natural twinkle in her eye.
Unfortunately, nowadays, on top of the fake hair, fake nails, surgical enhancements, and, in some instances, skin lighteners as well as fake-and-bake tans, you might find yourself looking into a Black woman’s eyes, and being greeted with a lavender iris. Quite an impossible hue for a sister, by any natural measures.
Quite like matching a cell phone case to an outfit, having your eye color in sync with your mood and/or your wardrobe, is becoming the next tier in fashion mayhem, and possibly the latest set back to celebrating natural beauty, and our ethnicity. This is called eye color privilege. It’s new phenomenon taking over the Black community as self-expression and the definition of beauty finds newer channels to encompass.
Contact lenses were once a product used for individuals needing vision assistance. They were designed as a visionary solution in lieu of glasses, to offer the necessary eye prescription but with a feel of never having needed glasses. Tossing in the color aspect made the idea of wearing contact lenses more of a creative option, like picking out your frames at the eye doctor. Yet everyday people are having lenses custom made as a way to lighten up their eye color, and step out of their ethnicity.
Maybe one could state that eyes have become the new inner prejudice. More and more Black women are rushing to the color contact aisle searching for a new shade of happiness. Their idea is that slipping into a set of contact lenses, can take you from the now perceived dull that is black and brown eyes, into a more popping and engaging hue, like America’s fascination with blonde hair and blue eyes.
As we see more and more celebrities fall into the contact lens abyss, the once famed phrase, “Black is beautiful,” begins to die at the closing of an eyelid.
Amber Rose has been known to dabble with blue eyes for more of a striking look, Tyra Banks occasionally rocks hazel, and Naomi Campbell moves about the color palette like a Picasso painting. Apart from them, we probably all know a sister who dances around the lens shades to the same degree with which she dyes her hair.
Unconsciously, this may be viewed as a norm or an acceptable trend, but quite like the statement that you made when you chose to go natural or relax your hair, the story your eyes tell carry the same conversation.
What are your eyes saying to the world?
- Alaina Lewis
When I was in middle school girls were wearing colored contacts, this is nothing new and I thought it was a trend that fell off until recently. It’s definitely corny as anything to me though especially if the color doesn’t even look like it could be natural.
I agree!
It’s been around since I was in high school and it’s ubbbbeerrr corny right now.
C-O-R-N-Y!!!
If I spot anyone donning colored contacts, I personally shake my head in pity.
Side note: I have dark brown eyes [as do the majority of black ppl] and I CONSTANTLY get compliments on them. It’s still wierd to me b/c I think they’re regular and common.
“Side note: I have dark brown eyes [as do the majority of black ppl] and I CONSTANTLY get compliments on them. It’s still wierd to me b/c I think they’re regular and common.”
Same here !! I think it’s not really the eye color that mattters though – to people who look past the superficial – it’s the depth and the emotion that you can see in the eyes. I’d rather have that than a “lavender iris” any day.
Just my thoughts.
I have never been into colored contacts, or contacts in general. I guess it’s a personal option one has to want for themselves. But the allure of ‘exotic’ eye colors should be long gone…I’m just saying. That’s played.
I really don’t like when Black women wear colored eye contacts. I feel as though they may be rejecting the beauty of themselves. Ever heard of the saying, “Eyes are the windows to your soul,?” I take that literally and when Black women do this we are only prohibiting the world from seeing our true selves…..I’m just sayin’
i’m a little unerved myself when i see sisters rocking grey contacts. i agree with the those who said it’s like its a rejection of some kind…guess when folks fawn over those who have them naturally, it give others reason to emulate them…
I think it all depends on how you’re using the colored contact lenses. It’s not always hatred or trying to emulate a race. Wearing them does not always indicate that you’re rejecting your cultural makeup. It could be that they are trying a new look in the same way that someone tries out a new hair color or lipstick color. I remember Janet Jackson saying that she used the hazel contacts to give herself a colder look just for her character. It’s only shameful when your intent is in the wrong place.
When I see black women with colored contacts, I just ask myself, “Why?” I think they look ridiculous in them. The eye colors are super rich in color and do not look remotely natural. Half the time, their eyes look irritated when they wear them. Not a good look, in my opinion.
1)Tyra Banks has stated and proven that her eyes are naturally a green/hazel color, similar to Rihanna’s. Not a stan of either, just a fact checker.
2)I hate colored contact lenses. I’ve been a contact lens wearer for 14 years and I’ve never seen a pair that didn’t look fake. Now they have these lenses that make you look like a Manga or Harajuku character (they cover the entire pupil and have been found to be dangerous to retaining vision). I love my chocolate brown eyes and wouldn’t change them for the world. I just wish other women enjoyed their natural eye color as much, but like hair types, we all seem to want something we don’t have!
Although I am not one to wear colored contacts I have to disagree with the idea that the reason for women choosing to do so has something to do with wanting to “step out of their ethnicity”. I believe it’s just another form of self expression. It may not always be pulled off very well, but it’s like coloring your hair, choosing a purse, or a pair of shoes.
Those hazel ares are definitely not Tyra’s. She paid for them. When she first started, her eyes were NOT hazel. They were brown, yes. But not hazel! I’m sorry.
And I hate it when sisters do it too. It’s like come on yall. We got the fake hair, fake everything. Like the author wrote, can’t we at least have something natural, ethnic and real!? SMH
Disgrace to our ancestors walking around looking like white barbies with brown skin.
I agree with everything you said except for the first part. Tyra was born with green eyes. It’s a proven fact.
I agree with @Risse I wear colored contacts all the time and I dont use it as a way to “step out of my identity” just like I dont try to “make a statement” by rocking my BAA [[Big Ass Afro for those who dont know lol]] right along with my green contacts. I just simply like the way it looks.
Sometimes I think we really read too deep into these things jus cause I wear colored contacts doesnt mean Im tryin to be white or hate my brown eyes and just cause I wear natural hair dont mean “Im down for the cause” (like people tend to assume I am lol) && wearing a short skirt dont make me a hoe. lol. simple as that.
It is becoming like Light Skin again. People want green eyes or blue eyes like people want to have lighter skin. Smh. I pity them. Yes, there are more and more “black” people with green and blue eyes nowadays, my boyfriends entire family has green and hazel eyes, one of his uncles having actual sea blue eyes. It is kind of weird, but at least with them they were born like that so it does look natural. You can spot a coloured contact lens a mile off. I think it is fine to wear them as a form of self expression, but if you are wearing them because you are not happy with your eye colour because you feel it is inferior, then you need to seek help A-SAP.
I can’t believe ppl are wearing fake contacts again. I remember back in the 90s when this was the fad. I found it stupid then and I find it stupid now.
But with that being said I also have to say that
1) It’s true that most black people have brown eyes (of course most people, regardless of race, have brown eyes because brown eyes are a dominant genetic trait. Lighter eye colors are recessive traits and therefore less common)
2) Although brown is most common, it is not impossible for black people to have a natural eye color of another hue. I know black people who have hazel and green eyes.
3) Tyra’s eye color is naturally hazel (just like Rhianna)
Wait, I believe Tyra’s eyes are naturally hazel in color. My pet peeve is that some people don’t know how to tell fake eye color from real eye color. For example, my eyes are hazel in color and people ask “do you wear contacts?” Like hello, there are black people with other eye color but brown. I know black people with naturally blue eyes, grey eyes and green. But I don’t have a problem with people wearing fake contacts from time to time to switch it up nor do I see it as self-hating. Sorry but not everything we do to our appearance is self-hating. Now there are those people who purposely wear fake contacts every day because they don’t like their eyes color and think it is inferior because it isn’t a lighter shade but that ideology is not exclusively to black people, look at Paris Hilton her eyes are naturally brown but she wears blue contacts nearly most of the time.
Your right not every new look is self hatred. But ask yourself this… how many brown women with blue, green, hazel, or soft brown eyes wear dark contacts? How many people period with lighter eyes wear dark contacts? We can pretend all we want “I just want a new look” but when you look inside, what are you really trying to achieve?
well tyra has naturally hazel-ish green eyes.
but other than that i think most women of color look a bit weird when they rock the colored lenses. i’m usually the type of person that thinks ppl should rock what makes them happy but colored contacts tend to make the wearer look a little silly.
i have noticed that some men get extra excited when a woman of color has lighter eyes so they probably want a taste of that attention too. i had a friend that guys used to go crazy over her “green” eyes, little did they know that she popped them out every night lol
I really just want to say on behalf of Tyra Banks, she does not in your words “occassionally rock” hazel eye contacts, she is a natural. I was intrigued by the title but then I quickly got bored in reading it and then a quick scan left me less than thrilled by this article. I too as you state rock hazel/green eyes and like Tyra mine are real. It was not easy growing up being w/ my eye color, constantly being accused on wearing fake eyes being told they were the best contacts ever..etc..etc.. it took years for me as a Black woman to accept this once thought curse (now i know it was a blessing) of mine…my eyes. Having to continually explain that both of my parents are Black I am not “mixed” etc. Listening as folks hissed at me calling me a cat…referring to me as the girl w/ the eyes (which is just silly)…thinking something was wrong with me and now finally at a place of acceptance. I used to want to wear brown contacts but I am who I am and my eyes are a part of me- I embrace me completely and am ever so thankful that God saw fit to bless me with these beautiful eyes of mine.
Just because you have a complex doesn’t make the article boring irrelevant. Open your EYES sister. Maybe you don’t have a problem, but some of the people around you do.
Don’t let your past determine how you address the problems around us.
My ex boyfriend had blue eyes, so I know SOME black folks don’t have black or brown eyes. But whether tyra rocks contacts or not, that sister loses points for the blonde hair weaves. BLACK PEOPLE DONT have blonde hair.
It’s not being self-riteous to think sister should respect their color, it’s being proud of where we come from. #thatisall.
@ Jinx – actually your statement that black people don’t have blond hair is absolutely wrong.
Our array of colors is not limited to skin tone.
I grew up with a black girl with blond hair and gray-blue eyes. Nothing was fake. I’ve known her since we were kids. Her hair was straight up blond….there is no other color to describe it.
We need to appreciate and acknowledge that not every black person is going to have the same hair texture or color as other black folks.
I don’t know if it’s jealously, but I think people should stop coveting what others may have or look like and appreciate your own being.
I know black people with natural blond hair.
What’s wrong with wearing a blonde weave? Have you never colored your hair? There is nothing wrong with rocking a weave or wig (or coloring your hair, or straightening it out, or wearing contacts) Sometimes people just want a change from their usual everyday look. It doesn’t always indicate self-hate.
PREACH ON. I am so tired of black people thinking it’s acceptable to white themselves up to meet the needs of societies prying eyes.
SISTERS it’s time to break away from stripping our ethnicities, and embrace who we are.
And I agree. THOSE ARE NOT, Tyra’s real eyes. I promise you, when that sister first started out, she was black just like you and me. Now she’s fronting on her many tv shows, rocking red fake hair, and hazel eyes like she’s little red riding hood. SMH at it!
Sigh, the war on Black female physical features continues.
So what are white women doing when they wear contacts?
Anyway I have worn contacts for about 14 years and switched to color after about 5 years. I usually wear chesnut brown or even green. And guess what? I love wearing my natural hair texture. So the whole “step out of their ethnicity” seems way off base to me. Women like change!!!
I don’t think looking less “black” or ethnic has anything to do with most peoples choice to wear contacts. I know people of all ethnicites, white, asian, south asian etc. that wear contacts. Plus not every black person has brown eyes, my grandfather was mixed although had dark skin, had blue grey eyes, as well as his other siblings.
Most ethnicites have brown eyes (black, asian, Native etc.) I have seen a couple although not many people of middle eastern origin with green. or grey eyes.
Eeewwww chicks are still rocking colored contacts? I just think it looks… strange. I have been told several times that I have beautiful eyes- and guess what? They’re damn there black! What is the issue with (black) chicks these days? If you want “a change” change your nail polish chica.
I’ma leave y’all alone. Lol. Do what makes you happy.
Even if it means looking like BECKY…
We ‘ont want ya no way gal!
I see nothing wrong with the contacts if they look somewhat natural. Unnatural colours like purple, white!!!, some blues, etc are scary.
There are black people with blue, green, grey, light brown, amber, etc eyes that are 100% natural. So I don’t think anyone should be reading into this too much. It’s a fashion statement that’s all.
People from all races where coloured lenses. Are they self-haters too? No, not all of them. It’s like changing your nail colour or hair colour.
Didn’t like this read because it comes off as attacking every shred of artistic ability black women use to their disposal. From the top of our heads to the bottom of our feet, black women and women in general are attracted to beauty experimentation. I remember when only white chicks wore thongs. Is this an issue today? NO! So why go after black women who wear colored contacts? I remember when weaves were taboo. Those sistahs caught so much hell. Even gay azz Alexander O’Neal had the nerve to write a song,’FAKE,’ about the non-natural phenomenon women were participating in greater numbers. He probably had more weaves than a stable of horses would allow but he profited from taking a jab black women and their experimental habits.
We should pay homage to all those black women who caught hell in the 70s and 80s for being the first on their block to rock colored contacts, weaves and other taxable items, for if it were not for them, we would not have the innovative weaves, contacts, cosmetics procedures today.
Some wear it well and others need to go back to the drawing board but I refuse to question any woman’s allegiance to her ethnicity just because they want to change it up.
well i dont see how this is self hate when you’re an uber creative person like me.lol i HATE looking like everyone else so i dont mind being the only black girl where everi go, i dress creatively and i would love it if i wasnt so squeamish about eyes cause i have always wanted lavender or purple eyes. simply cause its different. brown eyes are too common and boring. yes they’re tacky and corny but so is trying to dissect every little thing and call it self hate.
seriously, its no different than all these news people constantly on black women about being single and why we wear weaves ect. so while you ladies are complaining that black women are under a microscope and are criticized for everything we do… you are doing the same thing right about now.
just sayin
LOL… Nice article..
I agree with most of the comments..
I’ve been wearing contacts for 7 yrs & Colored Contacts were never on my agenda..
I have brown eyes & I Like them..
I don’t have a problem with the usage… It’s just NOT for me!!!
Some of my friends wear them & that’s their choice..
Personally, colored contacts especially the unnatural ones like Purple or Blue look really scary… I really don’t get it.. I LOOKS SO ODD!! LOL..
That’s the beauty of the world… to see ppl with different eye color.
Leona Lewis, Vanessa Williams, Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Keri Hilson: Women of color with various eye colors—> It looks Great!
Another ex:Beyonce, kerry washington, Vanessa Simmons—> All black females with beautiful brown eyes..
Anyways, Ladies: Do what you want to do.. Just remember to be true to yourself & your natural eye color is beautiful..
Peace..
Ps. Tyra Banks has hazel [brown-greenish] eyes [I think the eye color slightly changes depending on the light]
naomi has naturally brown colored eyes.
I dont think its about self-hate. why when black women create an appearance is it called self-hate?? some may just want to change things up or prefer another colour to rock eg. Leona Lewis wears blue contacts.
Agree! but just wanted to chime in,Leona eyes are au naturale. I’ve seen baby pics and unless she’s had them airbrushed, those big ol’ blues are all hers.
My view on this is based on what the intentions and goals are when getting contacts. If for fun then fine if to lighten your eyes because you believe people with lighter eyes are more attractive it raises some questions for me.
To me the idea of Black people buying contacts to lighten their eyes is not new and it goes right along with the “Good Hair” comments and passing off long straight weaves as your real hair. Its all in an attempt to head toward a more Anglo-Saxon(white) appearance. Now I am NOT saying that every black person is doing this but a large majority of us are (usually young people and those without the education to know better).
Many Black men make a point of letting it be know that they go for women of color but they have to have light skin, light eyes, impossibly long hair, either straight or loosely curled, no kinks, and we as Black women try to live up to those standards but many Black women have a similar standard for Black men.
Most Black people don’t even realize that they’ve been suckered, that they are so busy caught up trying to reach white ideals that we are losing the things that make us unique. Its not just Black people though, most brown skinned cultures that have been colonized by Whites have the same problem. India, Middle East, South America, etc, all have this similar idea that light skin, straight hair, light eyes, is beauty. In India skin lightening products are a BILLION dollar industry. In a country FULL of brown skin people brown skin isn’t beautiful??? What since does that make? You can’t tell me that makes any sense or that it was our doing!
You said it Kiya! What happened was the RAP CULTURE who dissed dark-skinned girls in their videos! Many of our kids dont know better because they barely know their dads, and were raised by daycare, and the tv. People used to have dark-skinned girls in their pictures; Cicely Tyson was one. Today, also, many times black photographers would use the biracial girl with her white cousin for some modeling jobs because of the similarity and contrast effect on the clothes; i could always pick out the cousins of the biracial kids in modeling. When you are in a multiethnic family, you could see it.
i mentioned this earlier but a lot of us brown folks think that light eyes are more attractive…. it IS only because with me i feel like brown eyes is so boring and common EVERYBODY has brown eyes. so its cool to see something different sometimes
I’m in my 40′s and can’t believe some of the things our younger folks tend to focus on…..I mean REALLY……are the natural color of Tyra Banks eyes that note-worthy? Really??????? With all that’s going on in the world, who cares??
I wear contacts because I need to. I have never worn clear contacts because just like you add color bands to your braces and jazz up your glasses I thought, “Let’s have fun with this.” I don’t try to act like they are my “real eyes.” Just because someone wears color contacts, doesn’t mean they are battling with some deep self-hate issues.
I love this article, and I’m glad you’ve pointed out this anti-black girl BS! And Tyra does NOT have green eyes. She has you all fooled. I know cause if you watched ANTM you’d have heard her say so.
#wakeupworld
Everyone who thinks this piece is just pickign to much, is probably goign to buy skin bleaching cream when it comes out! PREACH Coco and Creme
This is sad…
moral of the story:
Self-expression vs. Self-hate… Who are any of you to judge/speculate about others and on what side they are on.
Blah blah blah boring boring boring, people can do what they wish, wearing eye contacts is just the same as wearing mascara or eyeliners, girls and guys just want to accentuate the eyes, they just want them for the allure and seductive prowess, why do some caucasian girls/guys wear them same reason but when black people do it some black folk are too quick to sprout a negative opinion on the case blah blah blah boring boring boring rock on contacts!
thank you i am so tired of this whole self hate business. if you wear a weave ur self hating, if u relaz ur hair ur self hating if you color ur natural hair ur self hating. im so tired of people projecting thier narrow defenition of what it is to be black on other people and when people are not able to fit into this simplistic defentition they accuse them of not being black enough. yes i agree that there are some people do wear eye contacts because they believe that lighter eye color is superior but not everyone. What i wonder is why no one is quick to accuse a white woman of self hating when she wears color contacts
How about “living and letting live”? How about appreciating someone else’s choices? Why is it that as women we always feel we have the right to criticize, accuse and attack each other because of our choices? Especially those choices surrounding skin color, hair texture and other cosmetic enhancements etc.
“WE” are all beautiful from the fairest of skin complexions to the richest, regal brown, deep mahogany and black! Whether our hair be coarse like boar’s hair or soft like silk… it’s OUR hair! None of us can change what we were blessed with at birth…. Yes, I said, “blessed with”!
I have Caucasian and Latino friends that all complain about their hair texture, eye color etc…
Sistahs, please let’s stop majoring in the minor and learn to appreciate and compliment each our for our individual choices, styles and makeup….. If we used this same energy in supporting each other we would be able to truly change the world and heal some of our insecurities.
Be blessed- Sheree
Well let me tell you – I’m white and I have blue eyes, and you know what? I’d die for a chance to have beautiful brown big eyes and thickly-curled hair. And darker skin tone.
All I want to tell is that we always want something we don’t have. And for some, blue eyes are beautiful and for other people (like me) it looks dull and boring.
I’m a mixed-race Latina with blue eyes (asked “Are those your real eyes?” my whole life) and thick, curly, long hair (obviously real so I was never questioned about that). I’ve no idea what this “eye color privilege” thing is supposed to be but I wouldn’t change a thing if given the chance because this is the way God chose to make me.
My mother has beautiful chocolately brown eyes, which are the most gorgeous things I’ve ever seen, and she taught me a valuable lesson when I was little about grace.
I was about 11 or so and whining and being insecure because I’d a curvy yet muscular body but all the other little girls my age had little bumps already and my boobies were teenie-weenie and almost non-existent. My mother laughed at me and gave me some kisses to fix my raggedy pitiful tears then sat me down and told me one of my aunts (father’s sister) had breast cancer and would have to have one of her breasts removed. I really started crying then and, after I calmed down, she talked to me about being gracious and grateful that my body was beautiful, had no limitations or illnesses, and there was nothing I could not physically do.
From that moment I ‘got it’ that a healthy body was a blessing and wonderful gift and I love my eyes, face, hair, body and features because they’re beautiful, healthy, whole and m.i.n.e!
I don’t understand why anyone would wear colored contacts, but I’ve no judgments for those who do. All eye colors are beautiful and IMO people should be thankful they can see and aren’t blind.
A couple of people appear to have a lot of antagonism against Tyra’s features in their insistence that green is not her natural eye color (kinda reminds me those who speak with ‘authority’ and claim Kim K. has butt implants). Here is one of Tyra’s baby pictures and I doubt her mother stuck green/hazel contacts in her baby’s eyes. Also, in other photos of Tyra when she was little, in addition to light eyes she had natural light brown/sandy/blondish hair. More pictures of Tyra here.
I find it hilariously ironic that to the right of this article, there is an advertisement for…colored contacts.
My mother and sister had grayish green eyes. Why do we think that non-brown eyes are somehow, not black. I think Tyra Banks has hazel eyes
you’re right. Tyra Has professed a number times that her real eye color is green, that those are not contacts. Why does any black outlet believe if your eyes are a shade lighter than brown naturally, your categorized as a phony? My eye color changes from chestnut-brown to amber in the summertime, as does my mother, maybe even lighter than mine. Guess that makes me less black… SMH.
This is called eye color privilege.
HUH, is it really privilege?
Tyra has always had light colored eyes. Some of “us” have light colored eyes without the help of contacts.
Don’t be so serious. It’s just a fashion statement. I have been getting my enhanced brown lenses from my optician for years. I wear a natural color (now that I’ve been through the hazels and greens) which gives my eyes a sparkle but the color is still brown. I wear them to enhance my beauty and my mood. I have been fashionable since age 3 (that I know of when I started walking in little girls’ heels) and I’m in my 50′s now so, whatever it takes! You look as good as you feel. Also, I have worn afros, locs, wigs, weaves and waves, and whatever, I rocked it!
…and as my mother used to tell me when I was growing up (after being told by jealous b’s I thought I was cute and better than them), she said, “If you don’t think you’re cute, who else will”?
‘Nuf said!
Ok, what is up with this article? Colored contact lenses are not new! This is not a lil’ kim situation…I don’t care whether or not uses light colored contact lenses to alter her already light colored eyes…eye color privilige? Only some silly folks with self-loathing issues view it as a privilege. When I encounter a black person with light colored eyes, I assume it is natural because genetics is tricky. I have family with chocolately skin with grey eyes, caramel hued with sky blue eyes, and porcelain colored with jet black eyes. Like I said before, unless it is a lil’ kim situation, I am not going to automatically assume that a black person who dabbles in colored contact lenses is color struck.
I’d only use them for cosplays for anime or comic conventions. LoL Other than that, I love my brown eyes!
Its a trend.
Just as we all have opinions, choices and rights, we all have the right to choose what we wear, how we wear it and when we wear it. Just as we all have noses, we all have opinions. Everyone has a right to change their hair color, wear contacts, wear short skirts opposed long skirts and pants. To wear pantyhose in the summer or not, wear their hair natural, get it pressed or wear a perm. It’s about the “right” to choose. It’s not a lack of ethnicity or love of your race. It’s the right to have a choice in life, the right to have a voice in this life. To put people on a guilt trip for choosing to wear colored contacts or dye their hair a lighter color is no different that judging someone for the color of their skin. Black is beautiful and how one chooses to express that beauty is up to them.
A different eye color isnt impossible for a person of color to be natural born with like you said. My dad has two black parents and has BLUE eyes natural blue and I have dark green eyes! Tyra banks eyes are naturally her color even when she tried to wear dark brown contacts her naturally light eyes shined through the dark colored lens..If there is an eye privilege in black world its just now catching on because white folks been screwing each other ever the blonde blue eyes since hilters time
Dear C&C,
I love this article! Walking down the halls of my high school everyday, I can`t help but notice all the hazel and blue contacts on the eyes of black girls, everywhere. This trend is not only happening amongst youth, like myself, but in the media. Role models like Nicki Minaj, and Tyra Banks, who you often see with bold eye colors, such as green, hazel and purple, send a message to girls everywhere .. a negative message that is. When these women walk into the world, wearing those contacts, they say to youth “This is the color your eyes should be, in order to be beautiful.”. That is a shame.
You see, there was once a time where I asked my mother to buy me hazel contacts. When she refused, I felt confused and hurt. I didn`t understand why she wouldn`t want me to have light pretty hazel eyes. Didn`t she want me to have pretty eyes? As I got older, I not only realized, but appreciated my mother not buying me contacts. Unlike Tyra and Naomi, my mothers objection to altering my natural beauty sent a positive message. She believed I was beautiful without hazel eyes. And women like that, women like my mother, those need to be our role models in the media. These women need to be, who little girls who think purple eyes are better than chocalate brown, look up to.
Thank you for this article.
Whoever wrote this article should know that those are tyra banks real eye color and are not contacts! and it’s so annoying. Tyra always keeps everything 100% authentic and to place her into the category of Naomi and Amber Rose is unfortunate, just because she’s black. I come from a family linage that has blue to chestnut-brown eyes. Get the with the program C+C!
In all honesty, I was one of the black girls rocking colored contacts–hazel to be exact. I wore them for years literally, and I don’t think I wore them for superficial reasons. First and foremost, I only wore contacts because I wore glasses from second grade. I ended up getting contacts because my dance teacher told my mom that the glare from my eyes on stage with my glasses was messing up pictures (rude) so my mom opted to get my contacts. After wearing those for a while, I ended up wanting color just because I mean I was putting stuff in my eyes anyway. Then I’d get compliments from guys like, oh your exotic, what are you mixed with and all the questions that worked my LAST NERVES, but tooted my horn at the same time, which is completely ignorant or young to say. Then once I really started to look at myself in pictures i was kind of like WTF I look like fool, and really was only getting them for superficial reasons, and it’s not cute my eyes are cool anyway. This was a complete ramble, I just wish this trend would sieze to exist I mean we already wear weaves, and get our nails done (not all) let something on us be real. But to each their own. Great post.
Gotta chime in…..
Tyra and Rihanna eyes are real. Both women have green eyes with flecks of brown, so from far away or in pictures their eyes look “olive green”.
Next time people make comments about black women not having eye colors other than dark brown should read a book on genetics…….
I’ve seen black women with pink and purple contacts. I seriously doubt they think anyone thinks that’s natural or that they have racial identity issues.
….and at the end of the day people are gonna do what they wanna do. People are gonna wear what they wanna wear, people are gonna eat what they wanna eat, people are gonna date who they wanna date. Everything is not always linked with something.
Most of the world has Brown eyes. It is very common. Someone choosing to wear non-Brown eyes wants something different.
I’ve never worn contacts & was never fascinated with light or dark colored eyes, but I fail to see the privilege light eyes have? I’m sure some people will make mention of it sometimes, but skin color will probably have more of privilege than eye color ever will.
I never thought of it as a race thing, I just think they make people look possessed. I saw a white girl with some hazel contacts when I was in middle school and she looked like a goblin. My roommate now wears green contacts and I also think she looks like a goblin.
I, too, have dark brown eyes. and I get compliments on them all the time! i love my eyes cause they seem to be the windows into my soul. they say dark sensual and focused! i think when people wear colored contacts they are masking their souls…just a thought!