shadism means prejudice on the basis of skin pigmentation. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.
Why “shadism” is a great word
SHADISM — [Noun] A prejudice or discrimination based on skin pigmentation, typically privileging lighter skin over darker skin within the same racial or ethnic group. From shade (referring to skin tone) + -ism (denoting a system, principle, or prejudice). Unlike racism, which constructs hierarchies between supposed races, or the more established colorism, its near-synonym, shadism sharpens the focus to the brutal arithmetic of melanin within a shared lineage. It is the family elder's hand lingering on a lighter cousin's cheek, the chemical promise of a fairness cream advertisement, and the wedding photo edited to brighten a complexion—a testament to how oppression refines its instruments to operate in the faintest of increments.
Etymology
From shade + -ism.
noun
- Prejudice on the basis of skin pigmentation.“Shadism (Staples 2008), a legacy of slavery, is a form of skin tone bias that identifies groups and individuals on the basis of their degree of pigmentation. It is an evaluation of people that minutely registers traits such as skin color, hair, and […]”