Simone Ashley Discusses the Importance of Representation on the Big Screen
In her recent interview with The Telegraph, Simone Ashley talks about using her platform to fight against colorism. The actress is known for her recent role as Kate Sharma in Bridgerton. This is not the first time the actress has voiced her concerns about the lack of minorities in television and film, but she made it personal this time.
The best change from the book was making Kate a Sharma. Because we got Simone Ashley. She’s Kate. #Bridgerton pic.twitter.com/1KjZEMx3UH
— Neena 👸🏾🐝 (@NeenaQueen20) March 26, 2022
Colorism is defined as prejudice or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group. Colorism is not just subjected to one minority group, but all. It dates back to the early 1900s in Black and Brown communities.
According to NCCJ, employers prefer employing light skin women more than dark skin males. Colorism is an ongoing problem, and Simone Ashley hopes to eliminate it for good.
Ashley dates her first encounter with colorism back to her childhood. Random strangers would walk up to her and state, “You would be pretty if you were light-skinned like your grandmother.” She also recalls when a barista was serving her, and they would barely make eye contact with her. She explained these incidents to be as regular as expected, but she knew it wasn’t right.
What hurt Simone the most was people closest to her telling her she only got cast in roles because of a diversity quota, not because she deserved it. She explained the emotions to be painful and sad, stating, “I’ve had friends say to me, ‘Oh you got that because you’re brown,’ and that really hurts [and] what’s really scary is that you can start believing it.”
In the interview, she explained how she would love to see more Black and Brown people become a part of the crew. “I would love to see more crew who are black and brown. I think that’s important. We should be careful about just sort of window dressing.”
Simone Ashley is a true advocate for representation and is not afraid to share her experiences to help others. We must bring issues that affect our communities to the forefront and she is doing just that.
