A few months ago, I was approached by the folx at JoySauce, a new Asian American media company to discuss colorism on Bella’s Table. I was honored to be part of this new outlet. Admittedly, this was one episode where I felt a bit unprepared. Perhaps I was just under the weather. The semester’s stresses caught up to me and I felt a little off my game. Luckily, Bella was super understanding and I really appreciated our conversation. I’m hoping that one day I’ll be able to publish on their website. (Note: This post was backdated.)
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. San Mateo, CA
I had a fantastic time catching up with an old friend about my research. The episode, “Don’t Stay Out in the Sun: Understanding Filipinx Colorism,” was initially recorded as a lecture for Liberating Education. Dr. Robyn Rodriguez has known my family for most of her life. She and my cousin grew up together. When we both ended up at UC Santa Barbara, I got to know her better and have seen her through different parts of her life. Having lost loved ones, the pandemic has been difficult for both us. Catching up on this episode and later meeting up in Sacramento was healing for me. I hope you enjoy this episode (Note: This entry was backdated)
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. San Mateo, CA
CNN Philippines and San Miguel Beer sponsored this conversation about beauty standards in the Philippines. I was excited to be part of this dynamic panel of folx from the Philippines. (Note: This entry was backdated to reflect the actual publication date of the video above.)
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. San Mateo, CA
It was an honor to be in conversation with Pia Araneta, whose article, “The Dark Side of Skin Lightening,” was published by Elle Canada. This piece was included in the print edition. Many thanks to Pia for sending me a copy. As a kid, I dreamed of working on one of those big-named magazines I used to read (I was devoted to YM and Marie Claire). Seeing my name in print in Elle was a victory for my younger self:) Enjoy!
Note: I have been negligent with respect to this website. Therefore, this entry was backdated.
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. San Mateo, CA
A gracious thank you to Vicky Feng and her team at Bloomberg News for putting together this news video, The Darker Side of Skin Lightening. At the beginning of the semester, I met Steve Pitre on campus and he shot the interview in my office. It was pretty exciting! (Note: Because there was no interviewer, answering a list of questions while talking into a camera was a little weird for me. Kudos to Steve because he was super patient with me and my inability to focus my eye line on one place. I’m also sure the editing team had to work overtime to fix this!)
Recently, I had a blast spending part of my Sunday with Jade Fox and G Supreme of The Coconut Connection podcast. I have known G for a few years now, and meeting Jade for the first time was truly an honor. We talked about my research on colorism, understanding current race relations, and what are some strategies we can employ to start these difficult conversations with our families and friends. I’m on two different episodes. The links below connect you to Spotify. However, you can catch The Coconut Connection podcast on other platforms here.
While listening to Part I, The Huz had a few questions that he kindly requested I clarify. Here it goes… In our conversation, G and I talk about a film called Mano Po. The original film was released in 2002, but there are eight films in the series. In the episode, I described it as the Filipino version of Rocky. Upon more reflection, it’s really more like The Godfather (without the mob stuff) in that Mano Po focuses on family legacies. Specifically, the film centers on a Chinese-Filipino family. Yes, it was this film that forced me to think about the role of the Chinese community in the Philippines, and how their presence informs colorism within the FIlipinx community. In our conversation, I used the term Chinoy/Chinay (also referred to as Tsinoy/Tsinay). This simply refers to someone who is mixed Chinese-Filipino.
These were the only two points that The Huz had questions about. If there are any questions or points of clarification needed for either episode, please don’t hesitate to contact me. You can leave a comment or email me directly at: joanne.rondilla@sjsu.edu.
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. San Mateo, CA
Kudos to Megha Rajagopalan for her current story on the BLM movement and cosmetics companies “rethinking” the sale and distribution of skin lightening products. It was a pleasure to chat about my own hesitations regarding the move. Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate the ways in which people are coming together to organize against racial justice. However, when major corporations declare that they will no longer sell skin lightening products, I am holding off on any major celebrations. The root of racism and inequality is capitalism. Historically, capitalist systems have ensured the subjugation of Black, Indigenous, and people of color. A single statement, followed by a donation, and a promise to “do better” does not hold a lot of weight for me. There’s too much money on the line and capitalism has always showed us that profit – not people – are central.
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. San Mateo, CA
Confession: I’m terrible at maintaining this site. Again, this story is about seven months late. As they say, better late than never. Back in October, I had a great conversation with journalist Kelly Ng about a play called White Pearl by Anchuli Felicia King. Until that conversation, I had not heard of the play (and I still don’t have my hands on this lovely thing). Ng’s original story of White Pearl was picked up by another journalist, N. Jamiyla Chisholm and featured on Colorlines. I’d love to hear from anyone who has seen this play (or has access to it). It sounds amazing!
This post is about two months too late. Apologies to the lovely Christine Bumatay, who wrote a very thoughtful and personal story about her experiences with using skin lightening products. You can read about it here. In addition, you should check out Christine’s piece about tourism, environmental waste, and its impact on local communities in the Philippines. Excellent work, Christine!
This has been the summer of pure blessings! (Sorry. I know that sounds so cliche.) I was recently contacted by Audrey Noble, a contributing writer for Vogue Magazine. She stated that she was writing a story on colorism in Asia and asked for an interview. After a short exchange, I agreed to answer some questions via email… and then time swept under me and I ended up voice recording my responses. Sigh. I’m a terrible respondent. Along with the voice recording, I sent the TFAL episode I was on, as well as a few written responses. Confession: I was super nervous about this piece because Vogue is a pretty big outlet and this is a pretty hefty story. In addition, I’m currently listening to Eliane Welteroth’s More than Enough, which amplified my feelings about Vogue! Anyhoo… I want to extend a HUGE thank you to Audrey Noble for her patience and hard work. You wrote a great piece and I hope this ignites more curiosities about the topic.
Maraming Salamat, Joanne L. Rondilla, Ph.D. South San Francisco, CA
skin memoirs 