‘Light Girls’ Documentary Set to Debut on OWN in 2015

It has been almost three years since actor and filmmaker Bill Duke unleashed Dark Girls – a documentary that examined the plight of women with dark skin, navigating a society and community that still devalues their existence. It was a troubling film that served no other purpose than to painfully reiterate what we already know.

Skin color is a global currency that can buy you happiness or turmoil and no matter how much we complain about it – we have to accept that altering mind sets is a feat that can’t be achieved.

But in case we are still confused about where the color lines are drawn, we have the option of subjecting ourselves to films that do nothing more than highlight overwrought themes for our entertainment. So, we are back to the second installment in what has turned out to be a very popular series.

Light Girls will premiere Jan. 19 on Oprah’s network, OWN, and this time viewers will internalize the other side of the coin. Women who are considered privileged and definable luckier than their darker skinned counterparts because of their lighter hue. Diahann Carroll, Soledad O’Brien, Raven-Symone, Tatayana Ali and Kym Whitley are among the list of participants who will testify to the burden of not being “black enough” and enduring labels like “yellow girl”.

Judging from the preview, it is clear that this film is supposed to give us a reason to not think that light-skinned girls have it made because they also undergo challenges despite being historically revered. But there is no reason to think that this will be a fascinating look into a world that we know very little about. It will most likely match the achievements of his predecessor or maybe even underperform.

It all depends on how many of us are willing to begin the New Year revisiting dead end topic.