The bleaching syndrome: Western civilization vis-à-vis inferiorized people of color

Abstract

Today, people of color idealize what is of alien origin, concepts and behaviors that are commensurate with Western civilization. Dominated by an idealized alien Other, people of color are located on an axis of inferiority. Their rescue from this inferiorization, which was achieved via the internalization of alien Western ideals, is best understood through the comprehension of the Bleaching Syndrome: a conscious and systematic process of self-denigration, and aspiration to assimilation on the basis of alien ideals. The Bleaching Syndrome has a universal effect; among people of color today, the Bleaching Syndrome is a worldwide metaphor that is relevant to all populations that are exposed to the socialization products of Western civilization. The ultimate objective of its victims is a desired quality of life that can only be realized by the endorsement of the dominant mainstream population. Due to the self-serving perspective of Western academe, the Bleaching Syndrome has failed to gain acknowledgment by means of the colonial inferiorization of people of color.