To see this episode is infuriating to me. I am a "light-skinned/red-bone" (depending on whom you are talking to and what time of the year it is). All of MY life, I have been teased.. Being called "ight-bright-and-almost-white" and "sand-n!99a"- and things like that. I consider myself to be BLACK. I am multiracial- having enough Native American blood flowing through me to be considered by the Government as Native American... however, I IDENTIFY myself with my BLACK heritage. When I was in elementary school, I attendended a VERY BLACK catholic school.. there were hardly any other children of any other races. It really was an empowering thing for me- because at this school.. they taught us that black IS BEAUTIFUL.. and to be PROUD of who we are as Americans... and that society views us as "minorities" but we are not.. we are ALL Americans.. and we are Blessed to be that of color.. They would tell us of the story about how God made us from the Earth.. And how the clay of the Earth varies in colour from contry to country... God created us from those different colours to display the array of beauty that each and every one of us posseses inside AND out! It's hurtful to know that there are black americans out there that don't believe that they are beautiful... My family ranges in colour from "light-bright and almost white(and even some looking and can pass for white if they chose to) to the blacker the berry the sweeter the juice" and we are all PROUD to say that we are black. When I was 4, I remember looking to my aunt (who is dark skinned) and I would try to emulate her essence. She is a very beautful black woman inside and out, and I used to wish to be her skin color often .. until I realized that all shades of black are beautiful. I had to remind one of my sisters about how important it is to re-affirm self esteem and preserverance as a brown skinned woman to her brown skinned child. My sister called her baby ugly at one point because she was brown skinned with thick curly hair.. instead of being lighter with not so thick hair. I had to hold her baby up to her face to face, and ask her why she felt like something that was a part of her wasnt just as beautiful as she was. That saddened my deeply, because it reminded me of the video with all those little black girls-playing with white dolls and saying that the black ones were ugly. Growing up, we had all shades of dolls.. but the ones that we felt most comfortable playing with were the black ones... Today, as a young woman in my early 20's- I can say that I see how soiciety can be crude to darker skinned women.. and it isnt fair. My son's dad is a beautiful dark skinned man- (@ least on the outside).. but he refuses to date brown skinned or dark skinned women. He only will date red/yellow/light/multi racial women ( i found this out after i broke up with him). It's sickening to know that there are people that are brazen enough to discriminate based upon skin tone-epecially when they too themselves are black. Because of my skintone and facial features- I can "pass" per se- as a multitude of different races- when my hair was longer- people would ask me if I were western indian- pakistanian-balck and asian-ect.. and now that I have cut my hair off ( I did it because I got tired of hearing how pretty and good my hair was.. and being reffered to as being a mixed breed-mullato-mutt.. and also tired of having people ask me what my nationality was)people say I look like Im Dominican, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, Latin.. ect... It's really frustrating.. because I really had to do some soul searching. I was never black enough for the balck kids.. and never white enough for the white kids- so I was constantly being outcasted- because I was too light or my hair was too long and curly or beacuse I was too tan and my hair was too curly. I thank God, that I found peace within myself.. and that I was blessed with the opportunity to attend that school where they helped each and everyone of us define who we were as american children that just so happened to be black. My heart, thoughts and prayers go out to EVERYONE that is struggling with self- identity. It is like being the uncool kid in school.. but the uncool kid in school usually turns up to the class re-union and is the showstopping attention stealing magnet of the event.... God bless each and everyone of you that are struggling and trying to cope.. and those of you that are trying to help someone that is in the situation :)