Skin tone variation within American black communities has long been associated with intraracial stratification. Data from the National Survey of Black Americans (NSBA) indicate that lighter-skinned blacks – net of such factors as region of residence, age, and sex – consistently have higher levels of nearly every socioeconomic indicator including educational attainment, personal and family income, and perceived physical attractiveness when compared to their darker counterparts. What does this color caste system mean for the personal identities and emotional experiences of dark-skinned blacks in America? Using data from the NSBA and six interviews with dark-skinned blacks, I set forth social psychological implications of a phenotypically stratified subgroup in the United States
