Actress Beverly Naya has ignited fresh conversations on self-love after revealing the alarming statistic that drives her passionate fight against colorism and skin bleaching in Nigeria.
In a powerful interview on One54 Africa, the talented star opened up about her documentary that took the battle against harmful beauty standards to the world stage.
Naya dropped the bombshell figure:
“77% of Nigerian women bleach their skin.”
She linked it to deep-rooted societal beliefs that lighter complexions equal superior beauty.
She described the painful hierarchy:
“There’s this hierarchy of beauty according to complexion, where it’s like the lighter you are, the better. Culturally, you know, in society, it’s there.”
The actress equated colorism to bullying, recalling how casually derogatory terms like “Blackie” were thrown at dark-skinned people without any real pushback.
“People knew that you could literally look at a dark-skinned person, and you would say, ‘Oh, Blackie,’ and it was derogatory, it was offensive, but there was nothing to define what that act was. But then it was colorism.”
Her documentary aimed to educate, expose the dangers of bleaching, and inspire change:
“The whole idea was just to inspire people to love the complexion that they’re in and appreciate themselves for who they are.”
Naya recalled the documentary’s explosive global impact after dropping on Netflix shortly after George Floyd’s death:
“Naturally, it blew up. So many people watched it, and the impact was insane.”
Deeply moved by the overwhelming response, she vowed to keep pushing the movement for self-acceptance and against colorism.
This bold revelation from Beverly Naya strikes at the heart of Nigeria’s beauty pressures and celebrates natural skin tones in a society that often pushes the opposite.