We spoke to Dove influencers about the representation and inclusion of women in the media – and how they’re playing their part to challenge beauty standards.
Sthandiwe Kgoroge is an actress and fashion designer, best known for her roles in Generations and Isidingo.
HAVE YOU EVER FELT UNDERREPRESENTED IN ADVERTISING OR MEDIA?
I started working in the TV industry in the late ’90s after I finished university. Back then, there weren’t any other women who looked like me in the industry. Skin-lightening creams and lotions were popular, which meant that even the African women I did see on SA TV were light-skinned, thin, and the majority of them came from modelling. Of course, this is an unrealistic picture of society, because we don’t all look the same.
WAS THERE EVER AN INSTANCE WHEN YOU FELT EMPOWERED BY SEEING WOMEN LIKE YOU IN CERTAIN POSITIONS?
Brenda Fassie was a famous musician, and yet she looked just like me. I bumped into her once, in the corridors of the SABC, when I travelled to Joburg for the first time to audition. She took one look at me and said, “You’re beautiful!” That said to me, “I’m seen, and I have the right to walk on the same ground everyone else does.” Brenda changed the way I saw myself. Long live MaBrrr!
DO YOU FEEL THE MEDIA AND ADVERTISING INDUSTRIES NEED TO STEP UP REGARDING THEIR REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN LIKE YOU? WHY?
Yes. Media needs to be deliberate in reflecting back to us who we are and not enforcing their standards of beauty, especially in Africa, where shades and sizes are so beautifully varied. But in 2019, we’re still trying to get them to see that. The public also needs to take their power back, by not supporting a program on TV, or a magazine, that doesn’t try to know you or show you.
DO YOU FEEL A CAMPAIGN LIKE PROJECT #SHOWUS WILL MAKE AN IMPACT FOR WOMEN LIKE YOU, AND FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS?
This story is from the June 2019 edition of GLAMOUR South Africa.
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This story is from the June 2019 edition of GLAMOUR South Africa.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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