Bad field Negro.

Regarding that pic; I bet Naomi Barber King wishes she had one....let me stop. Bad field Negro!

Anywhooo, tonight I want to hit on a touchy subject: colorism. I have been accused of it on this blog. -At least when it comes to my taste in women- And some of this was based on my...ahem, ahem, affection for a certain former child star. And while I cannot deny that my love for Lark is undying, (yes her makeup has been a bit shot lately, but hell, even a Porsche has to be taken to the car wash every now and then) she is but one of a certain hue who I find among the top ten women I find most attractive. Nia Long; Debbie Morgan; Angela Bassett; Tyra Banks; Laura London; Angel Luv...well, you get the picture;

I pretty much "always bet on black."

The thing is I do think that to a certain degree, skin tones play a role in how certain people view others. I think, for instance, that folks in the majority population do find us darker skinned Negroes to be a tad bit more threatening. And, sadly, some of us Negroes are still hung up on skin color and tones within our own tribe. (Trust me, I know a thing or two about this one, Mrs. Field is from south Louisiana, I could dedicate an entire blog to the attitudes of some folks in that part of the world, but I want to stay in my in laws good graces.)

I am writing all this because of the next story I am going to drop on you, and because I wanted to put all of my cards on the table -well most of them- about the subject.

"THE FACTS
The singer says the coverage she’s received in the media stems from her features.

THE SPIN
Frankly, I find it odd that someone who nearly killed themselves weeks ago can instantly go back to the promo trail 90 seconds after being released from the hospital and acting like nothing is wrong.

Moreover, I find it annoying as hell that she’s trying to play the victim yet again on her own actions.

In a new interview with VIBE.com, Fantasia says that her darker skin and fuller features made her a target in the media. Normally, I would be down to defend such a stance, but in her case I want her to find tape for her mouth.

Via the VIBE piece:

But does she think her African and more ethnic features had anything to do with the excessive and sometimes mean-spirited tone of the coverage she received about her personal life? Say, versus the media’s nearly silent stance on the controversial love lives of other female entertainers like Angelina Jolie, Britney Spears or Alicia Keys?

“Yes, I do. I really feel like it does. I was on Nancy Grace, CNN, every gospel station and in every magazine and every newspaper,” she told VIBE about the scandal before her O.D. “It was on. You would have thought I was the President or something.”

First of all, the media has never not scrutinized Britney Spears. In fact, when she did something extreme – oh, shaving her head – that’s when the coverage got even worse. I still see Jennifer Aniston vs. Angelina Jolie stories in the supermarket tabloids.

As for Alicia Keys, no, the mainstream media haven’t touched on her adultery stories, but to be honest, the mainstream media didn’t touch on Fantasia’s either until she tried to commit suicide.

That’s why they talk about her so harshly. She is potentially facing a lawsuit from the wife of her married boyfriend and she tried to kill herself as a result. If Alicia Keys tried to kill herself and/or had Mashonda claiming there’s a sex tape of her and Swizz getting it in you don’t think the press would think about it then?

Fantasia adds:

“I’ve battled and have had to deal with that before. Lord forgive me and I don’t want to offend anybody,” she says, “but when [I did Idol] it seemed like everybody there was Barbied out. Slim, long hair, light eyes, light-skinned. And here I come with my dark skin, full nose, short hair and full lips — it was hard.”

Yeah, but you won. And the year before that, the big friendly black man won.

The [only] thing I agree with is this:

“They never put me in those magazines [featuring] the red carpet. Everybody there has long hair and everybody is bright-skinned, and I was like, ‘But wait a minute. They never gave me that.’ That bothered me. And then I tried hard to find people to dress me and they still would not put me there [in those magazines].”

But that has nothing to do with the fact that the media saw a scandal by way of suicide, sex tapes, and being slapped with million dollar lawsuits. None of that happened for Britney, Alicia, and Angelina and if it did the press would’ve talked about it. Save racism/colorism debates for when they apply.

Otherwise, own up to your actions. Ain’t that right, Mrs. Paula Cook?

Now that I’ve had my say, what’s your spin, folks?"

TVOneonline.com is asking folks for their spin. I think I would rather hear yours.

And why am I thinking that knowing the complexion of the author will affect how I view the piece? I know it shouldn't, but I am thinking that it will. Hmmmmmm...... Bad field Negro!