INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

‘Take Off Your Wig!’ Irene Major Defends Bleaching Her Skin For 10 Years, Talks About Nigerian’s Weave [Video]

By Paula Mooney
Published on: 04:19 PST, Feb 8, 2018

Irene Major got major attention when the former model appeared on ITV’s This Morning and snatched off her own blonde wig to make a point about skin bleaching. In doing so, Irene showed off the skin around her hairline, which was darker than the skin on her face. The above video, titled “Black Model Defends Her Choice to Lighten Her Skin,” has swelled to enjoy more than 80,000 views on YouTube since being published on Wednesday, February 7.

Irene was there to talk about the comments that Mathew Knowles made to Ebony when he said that Beyonce’s light skin made her famous and that when he first met her mother, he thought Tina Knowles was actually a white woman, as reported by the Inquisitr.

Major was asked plenty of questions about why she decided to lighten her skin, with the singer and former model admitting that she has been lightening her skin for 10 years. Irene likened skin bleaching to the reverse concept of tanning, lightening hair, and other beauty changes. Whereas she didn’t see what the big deal was about skin bleaching, the opposite view was held by AJ Odudu.

AJ argued that skin lightening is a choice that is made based on internal issues by people who aren’t proud of their heritage, but Major begged to differ. The interviewers brought up the alleged health concerns that came along with lightening the skin.

AJ noted that Irene and folks like her should feel free to lighten their skin anytime they wanted without judgment, however, she also wanted black people to celebrate their natural beauty. As such, Irene challenged AJ to take off her own wig or weave. AJ wouldn’t take off her hair but said that even if she removed her fake hair, she could straighten her natural hair to make it look the same.

AJ spoke about the thought process that in Asia, people who worked outside tended to have darker skin, and as a result, darker skin was associated with lower-class work. Those with higher paychecks tended to work in careers that were indoors and therefore had less exposure to the sun and fairer skin.

The fact that Irene would snatch off her own wig unexpectedly during the interview is what is making the video snippet go viral on Thursday, February 8.

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