Posted p.m. Thursday, Dec. 26, 2013
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In a culture obsessed with beauty and body image, UW-La Crosse senior Brittney Long is looking for answers.
![Image of Brittney Long leaning against a rock.](/contentassets/d2492d337f8a4841b98d59100cb0f8ab/imported-from-wordpress2/brittney-217x300.png)
“You need that personal interaction. I didn’t want to just research news articles,” says Long. “It is only from the women in Egypt I felt I could better understand how they define themselves and what they believed to be beautiful, especially since women's voices have been silenced or their narratives have been told for them.”She found that ancient Egyptians migrated from areas further south in Africa, so it would make sense that they would be categorized as black or African. Yet, Long encountered mixed information about the race of ancient Egyptians — some sources claiming there was no concept of race at the time. She wondered why the ancient Greeks weren’t similarly challenged on their whiteness. If there was also no concept of race during their time, why do nearly all Western movies depict them as white. Perhaps, she thought, Greek societies developed the concept of race. The research generated more new questions, but it also delivered answers. Long found a consensus among the Egyptian women she interviewed that ancient Egyptians were black and Egyptian women had an appreciation for being dark or darker skinned. Yet lighter skin was still on the majority of advertisements and sometimes darker women were expected to not get married, notes Long. “Overall, I found that women felt like beauty comes from within. All the women I interviewed mentioned that beauty must come from personality and must be expressed by character and actions,” she says. “In particular one interviewee expressed that beauty standards are arbitrary and what it considered different is beautiful.” Studying in Egypt was “an amazing experience,” says Long. “I thought I could take the project in other places like England or Jamaica, but Egypt kind of called for me,” she says. “I realized the research I would do would create questions for other students or people in general who shared my same interests.” Long graduated in December 2013 and aims to continue her education by pursuing a doctoral degree in cultural anthropology. “I hope to use this experience for graduate school and to deepen the research I started with colorism,” she says.