Skin Lightening refers to the chemical process that a person would go through to lighten the tone of their skin or provide a more even complexion. People that have uneven complexion, more or less melanin in their skin suffer from patchy tones all over their body and they might go through the process, which reduces the concentration of melanin, in order to look more evenly colored. There is a long list of chemicals that can be used to complete this process, but most of them are not safe for putting on your skin.
The chemicals that have been known to lighten the skin have been proven effective, but some of them have also been proven as toxic to use and contain unsafe and questionable safety profiles. There is plenty of controversy surrounding the use of anything to lighten a person’s skin and how it impacts ethnic groups. In at least one area of the world, you can see advertisements that process lighter skin tone, posting more information at a certain website.
The ads were met with complaints, of course, and according to one source, they had to be removed from at least one subway train. The ads shows a simple, split frame of a black woman and an Asian woman who went through the process and now have lighter toned skin as a result. The website claims that the treatment is “safe and natural” and can be used as a treatment for uneven skin tone, sun damage, hyper-pigmentation, discoloration and leads to “brighter skin”.
Those that complained voiced their concerns over social media by posting images of the ads and it was based on the fact that they seemed to be “racialized”, according to one source. When complaints start to arrive, the ads are reviewed when they get 5 of them to see if they are violating the terms or policy, but this ad was removed much faster than typical. The company released a statement on their website that apologizes for any “concern, offense, distress the ads may have caused”, but that did not stop the buzz on social media.
Even though the treatment might work and is used to even out skin tones and is only done by personal choice of the person that feels affected. The ad was not put in place to show any specific race, however, used two colored woman to show the difference the skin lightening treatment would work. The ad was found not violating any laws, including any human rights according to one source. A few complaints is usually not enough to get an ad removed, regardless of the actual content, as long as it abides by the terms put forth.