White

Colors, in general, can have a profound effect on human emotion, state of mind, and spirit because they are visual energy radiating from spectrums of light. Volumes of complex scientific research have been carried out for years on the subject of colors to support the fact that humans feel and react to various spectrums of light wavelengths that register on the human eye and brain's light photore-ceptors. For example, reflect on the emotional effect of viewing a large arching rainbow across a brilliant blue sky after a rainstorm, gazing at a botanical garden overflowing with exotic multicolored flowers, and looking out at a gathering of people of African descent dressed in bright-colored dashikis, robes, and dresses. The science of chromatics often attempts to find answers to the questions surrounding humans' color perception and reactions. Scientifically, the color white is the fusion of all the colors of the visible light spectrum. Technically, white is not a true color, but achromatic like black because it has no hue. However, in the art and spirituality of color interpretations, uses, and myths—white has positively affected and elevated people of African descent and humans, in general, spiritualitly, emotionally, and socially for thousands of years. But white can be a controversial color in some Western cultures, as can the colors red and black. For example, red is associated with uncontrollable anger, aggressive sexual energy, senseless violence, and “Native American” people. Black is aligned with bad, lowest level, ugly, and African descendants. White is linked with good, purity, beauty, and European descendants. Colors, like other aspects and elements of a society, can be politically and culturally defined or infused with a belief system.

One extremely controversial aspect of the color white is that it has been infused with a Eurocentric cultural and political belief that the group of people with pale to olive white skin have superior intelligence, culture, and religion. The politicizing of the white human body as superior to black, brown, red, or yellow skin tones has caused untold suffering of millions of people of color. Two helocausts (worst of holocausts) occurred on the soil of the Western Hemisphere; they were initiated and sustained by the malicious political, cultural, and economic thrust of white supremacy: “Native American” genocide and West African enslavement. White skin does not make a person superior, nor is the color white superior. In the final analysis, it is a person's or people's consistent deeds toward people and nature that reflect their [Page 713]state of humanity—not their physical color. (Some scholars of African descent have contested that people should not be judged or named by their skin color, but by their geographical, cultural, or religion's location and conduct.) All colors have their places in nature and advantages at a particular times. However, in a significant number of African cultures and societies, the color white has a unique political place, and cultural center—and spiritual space. For example, Kernet (ancient Egypt) utilized the symbolism in the white crown and pyramid; people of Central Africa used white chalk in societal and cultural rituals; and people wear white garments and cowrie shell jewelry in traditional West African diaspora religions and wear white clothing in Black Holiness-Pentecostal churches in America during sacred church rituals.

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