The ugly side of beauty
for women of color

THE ADVOCATES

No lush plants or greenery are growing in the pots outside the doors of Black Women for Wellness (BWW). Lined along the side of the building are small painted rocks with the words "empowerment," "love" and "Black Mamas Matter."



BWW is a reproductive justice health organization for black women and girls in South Los Angeles. In 2015, BWW conducted a survey and found that black women spend nearly $9 billion a year on beauty products. For the money, they receive a vast amount of chemicals that include carcinogens with known links to reproductive health issues.

Marissa Chan, environmental research and policy coordinator at BWW, works to educate black women and girls about the hazards of using beauty products. In Chan's opinion, chemical exposure happens to all women of color, but black women are at a significant disadvantage. Her biggest outreach is through salon workers, whom she suggests are at the most risk.



"Black women are often the most ignored and most marginalized," Chan says. "People don't really think about them when they work on specific products."



One ingredient that poses the biggest threat is fragrance. Stacy Malkan, author of Not Just a Pretty Face and founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, said the lack of ingredient transparency makes them so toxic, especially when it comes to fragrance.



"We don't know what's in them because the companies don't have to tell us," Malkan said.



In an attempt to study the fragrances, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics tested different products to break down the fragrances. They found that fragrances contained allergens and hormone-disrupting chemicals. She also says that fragrances affect people differently, so what may be an allergen to one person could have a different effect on someone else.

"Symptoms manifest in different ways," Malkan says, "but 30 percent [of people] report some sort of negative effects from fragrance, and that number is much higher if they suffer from asthma, like 40 percent."

Almost all people are exposed to fragrances from personal care products, but Malkan also says that women of color use more products than white women and therefore are more likely to be experience health effects — and there's a reason why.



"Cultural beauty standards are certainly a big part of that," Malkan said.



Malkan says women of color feel the need to meet a certain standard of beauty, which stems from how society markets the beauty industry.



EWG reports say the top five harmful products in beauty products marketed toward black women are retinyl palmitate, DMDM hydantoin, methylparaben, propylparaben and fragrance. These chemicals are listed as potential hormone disrupters and carcinogens, but they aren't always listed on the products.

This transparency is what Chan advocates for when it comes to hair stylists in the industry. As women of color continue to expose themselves to fumes and toxins from these products, they become more at risk for experiencing negative side effects. Chan said not all stylists are aware of the dangerous chemicals in their products.

Because of this lack of transparency, Chan's goal for BWW is to focus on policy and regulation. In 2016, the organization worked on AB-1575, a bill for companies to clearly label ingredients in beauty products sold in California. The bill was sponsored by Black Women for Wellness, California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, Californians for a Healthy & Green Economy, and Women's Voices for the Earth.



When stylists don't know the ingredients, Chan says, the chemical exposure goes unnoticed by both the consumer and the producer.


"Currently, professional products are not required to list their ingredients," Chan says. "Stylists don't have the option to know what's in their products and decide for themselves if they want to use it or not."



AB-1575 cleared the Assembly Environmental Safety committee on 4-2 vote, but died in the California State Senate. Chan says that they're keeping tabs on other bills, like the Personal Care Products Safety Act, which is sponsored by U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

The act would "require cosmetics companies to submit to the FDA cosmetic ingredient statements that include the amounts of a cosmetic's ingredients." But that bill is currently at a standstill, says Chan.



And while there are no plans to reintroduce AB-1575, Chan says that BWW continues to educate black women — with or without the policies.



"Black women definitely care," Chan says. "They've just never been given the chance to learn about it."

THE WOMEN

Angela Johnson paints in shades called "chestnut" and "sunkissed." She sometimes uses glitter, carefully maneuvers jet-black ink and locks in the paint with a few pumps of liquid sealant. Johnson says she produces art every day, but she's talking about makeup.



Johnson runs an Instagram account called @swatchyswatchy. On this account, she "swatches," or tests, makeup products for her audience on different skin tones. She describes her skin as "medium-toned" by way of her African-American and Filipino heritage.

"A lot of the shades that are shown [on Instagram] are lighter tones, and it's kind of a little discouraging for my tone to be the ‘darker tone,'" Johnson says. "I think about the girls that are darker than me or the girls that are extremely light that don't get represented as much."



It's a concept where women with lighter skin and straight hair are more accepted in society while dark-skinned women are not, something Shamasunder and Zota call "racial stratification."



"[Women] are very influenced by Western notions of beauty where whiteness and features associated with Caucasians are deemed more beautiful," Zota says. "Women of color are using some products as a response to those beauty norms."



The idea of "whiteness" dates back to ancient Asian traditions, where lighter skin was commonly seen on people of higher societal rank. Since then, most women of color have taken this ideology with them in beauty routines and products.



Raina Singh, an international USC student from India, says skin bleaching is common practice for women in her community. Singh says women and men bleach their skin because of the Indian community's "obsession with whiteness."



"Indians are already tan — they do not want to be tanner," said Singh. "I [bleach my skin] because my hair is dark and I like the way it looks."



Singh says the method for lightening skin has evolved from using natural ingredients to store-bought products. One well-known skin lightener that frequents the Indian community is 'Fair and Lovely.'' Singh says that her maid, who travels between her hometown and Singh's home, uses the product regularly.



"She hates going home because she has to work in the fields again and she'll get dark," Singh said. "She likes being [at my house] because she stays inside the house and wears sunscreen."

Chanel Minnifield, a black woman living in Los Angeles, says that she gets her hair relaxed knowing that there are chemicals that may be harmful to her health. Minnifield says she relaxes her hair for the aesthetics.



"I have a really, really sensitive scalp, so I'm literally always dying at the time [I get my hair relaxed]," said Minnifield. "But it's worth going through it because my hair's looking really cute, super silky, super straight."



Minnifield argues that while she may get relaxers, she doesn't believe that women of color are more susceptible to chemical exposure as researchers say they are.



"White women are more likely to get breast implants than black women," said Minnifield. "They're more likely to get injections than black women."



It's an argument that Malkan says she continually comes across. Malkan argues that while chemical exposure is in small doses, the constant application of a certain product, like skin lighteners or makeup, will eventually build up.



"A lot of products have the same chemical, so you're continually getting exposed again and again at the low level of the same percentages," said Malkan. "The exposures are low, but they're continual. And there are many, many low level toxic exposures that we're putting on our bodies every day."



While she does her research, Johnson still enjoys working with makeup. The risks don't worry her, and she's pretty confident about it. So, will harmful chemicals stop women of color from using makeup? For Johnson, it probably won't.


"No one needs makeup, but if something makes you feel better, I'm all for it," Johnson says.



So, what's a health-conscious consumer to do?



In an ideal world, consumers wouldn't have to worry about this. Regulators like the FDA would prevent companies from using the chemicals in the first place, says Shamasunder.



But in the absence of a stronger regulatory response, women continue to use beauty products despite the hazards. Chemical exposure is embedded into their routines, and finding products without chemicals will always require research. That research is even more drawn out for women of color. Chemical exposure is inevitable, but Shamasunder says that shouldn't be anyone's problem.



"Whether or not a woman cares shouldn't matter," Shamasunder says. "It should be taken out of that context; she shouldn't have to care."