Painful to read, but I’m glad you wrote it. When younger, I lived in west Africa and traveled in India, and I must admit to raw naïveté. I was shocked when I discovered fairness creams and skin bleaching. I could not fathom why people did not see their dark skin as being beautiful. I didn’t grasp the roots of colonialism, the white beauty standard or even the meaning of the word Caucasian. I thought (and still think) all shades of black and brown are lovely. I was incredibly sheltered, raised in a tiny town in Alaska, and extremely privileged. The more I learn, the sicker it makes me feel. We (white people) have much atoning to do. I don’t know how to start, except by self-education and to tell my black and brown sisters and brothers that I support you, I see your beauty, and am working toward us sharing this world together. ❤️