English SCHOOL BASED ASSESSMENT

Topic:Bleaching in Jamaica

Candidate name : Kimala Thomas

School name: Kingston College
Candidates number:1000573068
topic: What are the main causes of Skin Bleaching?
Date: march 29,2022
Teacher’s name: Mr.Carr
Territory: jamaica

Plan of investigation
My theme today is Bleaching in Jamaica and my topic is what are the main causes of
bleaching in Jamaica? I have had friends who have been engaging in skin bleaching. I
will be focusing on the main causes of skin bleaching because I would like to know
more about the causes of skin bleaching in Jamaica as well as educate people about
the causes of skin bleaching. Engaging in this research will build my vocabulary
because I will encounter different words and terms during my research. My written
expression and comprehension skills will also improve. I will be obtaining two of the
three pieces from google and the last piece from youtube.

I will be mainly using a newspaper article from the Jamaica Gleaner in which The
author used Standard English, except when quoting the exact words of a person , a
music video entitled ‘clean skin’ by savage savo the artist used an elevated level of
Creole and a picture to illustrate the cause of Skin Bleaching.

Reflection 1
The first piece of source that was read was an article written by Dr. Arusha Campbell-
Chambers. The article was entitled “Skin bleaching: Who says lighter is better?”. The
article mainly focused on the definition, side effects, social ranks and privileges, as well
as reasons why people bleach. This article has inspired me to not only read and include
it in my English Language school based assessment, but it has also inspired me to
educate and inform others of all the life-threatening information that was learnt by
reading this article.

The second piece of source gathered was a video entitled “Bleaching Mi Clean Skin ''
by Savage. In the lyrics of the song, the artist was basically informing the listeners of the
diverse types of chemicals that he used to bleach his skin, which included substances
such as WOW and Bio-clear. I found no inspiration to take part in the artist's actions as
it was obvious that the artist’s physical appearance showed some serious side effects
resulting from the substances used. The music video somehow had an impact on me as
sympathy was felt for the artist as he was willing to destroy his skin to merely ‘look and
feel good’.

The third piece of artifact was a picture taken from google, of a victim of skin bleaching.
Once again, the researcher was very angry and furious just to see how far a person is
really willing to go just to enhance their physical appearance. It was clearly shown that
the victim in the picture had a limited amount of pigmentation left in her skin. The
researcher was inspired to post an article similar to the one which was used in the
school based assessment. The picture reminded the researcher of many occupants of
her community as they were either as light skinned as the lady in the picture or even
lighter.

Reflection 2
In the first piece of source which was an article written by Dr. Arusha Campbell-
Chambers, the author used Standard English, except when quoting the exact words of a
person. The article was very clear and understandable, as the topic was clearly
explained and elaborated on. The author provided the definition of Skin Bleaching, the
possible side effects as well as a little history on the topic.

The second piece of source was an audio done by Savage. The artist used an elevated
level of Creole, as he sang to get the attention mostly from the younger generation. The
audio was very informative as lists of chemicals were given in the song which was used
by the artist to lighten his skin. The artist also made it clear that he only bleached his
skin to mainly get the attention of women.

The third piece of source was a picture in which I took off the internet. The picture
showed a lady who was a victim of skin bleaching. The side effects of the substance in
which she used to lighten her skin tone was visible in her physical appearance. The lady
looked like an elderly lady that lives in a rural area. The graphics of the picture were
very clear, although the background could clearly show that the victim of Skin Bleaching
was living in a rural community.

Reflection 3
I chose the topic Skin Bleaching for my English Language School Based Assessment.
The topic has helped me to become a better person because of the many ways in which
the topic has inspired me. The topic has inspired me to not only educate but also to
warn other people of the many dangers and side effects that Skin Bleaching may cause.
By doing the research on this topic I am now better able to give logical reasons and
information as to how skin bleaching will feel or even look good at first but it does great
damage to parts of the body that you may not be able to see with your naked eyes.
Some people bleach their skin to build their self-esteem, enhance physical
appearances, and according to the audio done by Savage, some people may even
bleach their skin to get the attention of the other gender. The topic and subtopic has
shaped my attitude by giving me a sense of pride, and the courage to not be ashamed
of the color of my skin.

Written report
f
The School Based Assessment started one day when my teacher explained what the
sba was and how the SBA was to be done. Once we had an understanding, we created
several groups, then chose our members, chose themes, topics and subtopics. The
research was solely based on articles gathered from different sources, which were very
informative and even helped to increase our vocabulary and grammar. Analyzing the
information from the different articles was not difficult, but rather easy to grasp only after
reading it once.

The 3 artifacts which changed our thinking about everything in regards to bleaching we
collectively decided to take 1 article from Devayne Chang, and the other 2 articles from
Jaydan Johnson. Devane Chang decided on one of “the toxic love affair with bleaching
cream”, the other 2 artifacts was from Jaydan Johnson from the group, one article about
why are some Jamaicans bleaching their skin to get lighter? And the third piece of
media was a picture to represent how bleaching affects your skin.
We collectively decided to choose these artifacts because they describe our theme
“bleaching in Jamaica” these articles are really good for the information we need.

Toxic love affair made us realize the price for bleaching cream was very high but we
never would of thought it was worth billions. High prices for bleaching cream were not
very surprising until I heard the prices it was going for and the prices it was worth. The
second article Why are some Jamaicans bleaching their skin to get lighter BY Mark W.
Wright proved that bleaching could result from low self-esteem or bullying and that
bleaching “will lead to an increase in skin cancer in the long run.”
The third piece was a picture that makes us understand the severity of bleaching and
how much it can change your skin.

The various outcomes of the research were positive because grammar; writing and
reading comprehension skills were stressed and improved with the help of the teachers
and classmates. What we knew about bleaching was greatly improved and widened and
also made me aware of the various addictions, and problems people face when using
products such as bleaching cream. In order to complete the SBA before the deadline,
we all worked together weekly in order to get the work done and to get the objective of
completing SBA.The articles selected were based on how it relates to the topic.
 Piece 1

Article on Skin bleaching: Who says lighter is better?

By Dr. Arusha Campbell-Chambers

Skin bleaching is the use of chemical substances to try to lighten skin tone or complexion by reducing the amount of
melanin in the skin. Melanin is the main substance that gives the skin its color. It helps to protect the skin from the
damaging effects of sunlight, like sunburn, skin aging and skin cancer.

Darker-skinned individuals generally have more melanin and may have slightly diverse types of melanin than fairer-
skinned people. This gives darker skinned individuals more protection from sun damage. Therefore, when individuals
bleach their skin, they are reducing their own natural protection from sun damage. Some of the side effects of skin-
bleaching products include:
• skin thinning
• acne
• stretch marks
• visible blood vessels
• skin redness and irritation
• easy bruising of the skin
• skin darkening e.g. around the eyes and on the knuckles

Social rank and privilege

The practice of skin bleaching has existed for many years worldwide. Historically, lighter skin has been a symbol of
beauty, social rank and privilege throughout the world. In 1901, toxic skin-whitening soaps were marketed as
antiseptic soaps and, in the 1950s, deaths were recorded from using these soaps. Some Japanese female
entertainers (Geishas) painted their skin white while some Chinese women swallowed ground pearls to try to lighten
their skin. Health officials in Jamaica say skin bleaching has been going on for decades. In the Caribbean, lighter skin
has been seen by many as associated with a higher social status since the days of slavery. There have been popular
phrases like, 'Nutten too black nuh good', 'tar brush ketch im', 'black ugly bwoy', 'high color' and 'nice browning' which
are still being used in society.

Media photos and advertisements often portray individuals with lighter complexions as being more glamorous and
desirable. There are even ads on YouTube targeting children with skin whitening products to help them become a
'star'.
An Asian beauty website went as far as to state that 'flawlessly milky skin is to die for'. Some songs blasted on the
airwaves continue to promote skin bleaching. There are others who have used their lyrics to discourage this practice
and promote self-pride.

Why people bleach

A study by Christopher Charles on Jamaican skin bleachers found the following reasons why they bleach:
• To remove facial blemishes
• To make their faces 'cool' as a result of peer influences
• To lighten their complexion • To follow a popular trend
• To have the visual stimulus of a bleached skin because it makes them feel good.
Churches, schools, media, health-care providers and everyone in general, need to spread the message that we
should all be comfortable in our own skin. We need to emancipate ourselves from mental slavery, educate people
about the dangers of skin beaching and promote equality in this beautiful island where we are supposed to be 'out of
many one people'.

Piece 2
 Piece 3
Song by savage savo
Hey!
What is it?
What is it?
What is it you are doing there?!
Is that bleaching cream in your hand?!
Do you know my real face?
You know nothing about bleaching!
I will teach you about bleaching
You are bleaching and you are not reaching
Wha' dat a deh a do deh so
Mi tell dem!

[Chrous]
Mi bleaching, mi clean skin, mi cream skin
Make mi get nuff gyal, mi nuh do bag of preaching, dawg
Mi clean skin, mi cream skin, mi clean skin
Say, mi get a bag of gyal, mi nuh spend like Lee Chin, dawg
Bleaching, mi clean kin, mi cream skin
Some say dem a bleach and them not reaching, dawg
Mi bleaching, mi cream skin, mi clean skin
Tattoo, mi pretty-pretty clean skin

[Verse 1]
Yeah get gyal inna mi zone, when mi use Neoprosone
Dem a ask "what's the damn thing?!"
Gyal dead when mi rub on mi Tambrine
Mi get a set of gyal when mi use Metasol
Cold and sinus, mi nuh use Cetamal, hey
Gyal fly in for a night when mi rub on Caro White
Tell dem!
[Chrous]
Mi bleaching, mi clean skin, mi cream skin
Make mi get nuff gyal, mi nuh do bag of preaching, dawg
Mi clean skin, mi cream skin, mi clean skin
Say, mi get a bag of gyal, mi nuh spend like Lee Chin, dawg
Bleaching, mi clean kin, mi cream skin
Some say dem a bleach and them not reaching, dawg
Mi bleaching, mi cream skin, mi clean skin
Tattoo, mi pretty-pretty clean skin

[Verse 2]
Yeah
Gyal a gimme now, when mi rub on the Wow
 Yeah Nadinola Montreal shell
Yeah!
Mi face white like seashell
Caro white make skin stay bright
Rich Bill Gates, bleach out pon bike
See di way clear when mi use Bio Claire
Gyal a say mi skin in-markings, that bright
Yeah

[Chrous]
Mi bleaching, mi clean skin, mi cream skin
Make mi get nuff gyal, mi nuh do bag of preaching, dawg
Mi clean skin, mi cream skin, mi clean skin
Say, mi get a bag of gyal, mi nuh spend like Lee Chin, dawg
Bleaching, mi clean kin, mi cream skin
Some say dem a bleach and them not reaching, dawg
Mi bleaching, mi cream skin, mi clean skin
Tattoo, mi pretty-pretty clean skin
Yeah!