A South Sudanese model was asked by an Uber driver if she'd bleach her skin for $10,000
"I'm black and I'm proud. I'm black, they can't keep me down."
- Innanet James.
Nyakim Gatwech is a 24-year-old South Sudanese model. What makes her special? She has been the victim of a crazy amount of cringe-worthy White-racism. The model who has earned the nickname “Queen of the Dark”, because of her skin colour – something that’s more than common in her home country, but clearly isn’t acceptable to White people who think there’s something called “too black” – was asked by an Uber driver if she'd bleach her body for $10,000.
A post shared by Nyakim Gatwech (@queenkim_nyakim) on
"I was [asked by] my Uber driver the other day, he said, 'Don't take this offensive but if you were given $10,000 would you bleach your skin for that amount?' I couldn't even respond I started laughing so hard."
"[Then] he said, 'So that a no' and I was like hell to the f**king yeah [that's] no, why on earth would I ever bleach this beautiful melanin God [blessed] me with," she added. "[Then] he said so you look at it as a blessing?"
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The funny (and sad) thing is, this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened to her. “He was not the first to ask me that question” she said in an interview with Yahoo!. “I feel the need to educate my peers on my skin colour rather than not saying anything and having it anger me.”
Nyakim, who now lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has been using her Instagram account to advocate black pride, diversity and celebrate her skin, alongside posing gorgeous photographs from her photo shoots. She is fast becoming a voice for those who have been victims of white conditioning and is a champion of being comfortable in your own skin. Since immigrating to the United States, Gatwech has observed how many people have been confused by the colour of her skin.
She captions her Instagram posts with uplifting and powerful messages like, “Dear my moonshine dark skin, sun-kissed complexion, burn skin or whatever they might call you: You are beyond beautiful and the love I have for is unconditional because you are me.”
In another post she writes: “Black is bold, black is beautiful, black is gold... Don’t let American standards damage your African soul. Love the skin you live in, no matter what colour or shade it may be.”
A post shared by Nyakim Gatwech (@queenkim_nyakim) on
A post shared by Nyakim Gatwech (@queenkim_nyakim) on
And while Gatwech is steadily becoming a fashion icon and household name in the fight for black pride (she has more than 180,000 followers on Instagram), she hasn’t always been the confident queen she is now. Growing up, she was someone who faced a lot of bullying, especially over her skin colour. Even now, she receives comments like, “You black as hell, take a shower”.
She also recalls a time when a random man bet his friend $20 to ask her if she was wearing leggings or if her skin was really that dark.
“There was a time in my life where I considered bleaching myself to avoid the dirty looks, the laughter, and for boys to find me attractive”, said Gatwech in an interview with Yahoo!.
Things have changed now for her though. When asked about her skin, the model happily said, “I love every part it. I love the fact my skin is unique and that my whole skin is one tone, and finally how soft my skin is.”
Gatwech’s rise and her empowering voice are nothing short of amazing. As she herself sums it up perfectly, "My skin absorbs the sun’s rays and my hair defies gravity. Now, you can't tell me I'm not magical!"