Colorism, the dark side of skin whitening in Thailand

By Gaspar Ruiz-Canela and Jackree Bunyamethi Bangkok, Oct 22 (efe-epa).- The winner of this year’s Miss Grand Thailand beauty pageant has become the target of discrimination on social media for her darker complexion, a deeply ingrained issue in the nation that academics are referring to as colorism. The pejorative messages began when Pacharaporn “Nam” Chantarapadit, who won the competition in September, voiced her support for pro-democracy student protests in Thailand. “The beauty queen looks like an African monkey,” wrote one social...