Applications of Skin Color Scales to the Study of Racial Inequality

Key Takeaways: In this brief presentation we discuss the benefits and challenges of utilizing skin color scales to study racial inequality. We specifically consider the contributions of studies that have applied this methodology to study racial inequalities among Latinxs in the US and in Puerto Rico with a focus on health outcomes.  Definitions of key concepts such as “race” , “racism” and “colorism” will be provided before considering their health impacts.  Opportunities for addressing methodological challenges and information gaps associated with the use of skin color scales in surveys will also be discussed.

Isar P. Godreau Santiago, PhD

Investigator at the Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies

University of Puerto Rico- Cayey

Speaker Biography: 

Isar P. Godreau Santiago obtained her PhD in cultural anthropologist the University of California  in 1999  after graduating from the University of Puerto Rico – Río Piedras.  She works at the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research at the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey where she has directed various institution-wide level research initiatives and her own research projects on race and anti-black racism in Puerto Rico since 2003.  She has published on hair, racial terminology, the folklorization of blackness, census racial categories and  the combined effects of racism and colonialism in Puerto Rican schools, and socail studies textbooks. She is the main author of Arrancando mitos de raíz: guía para la enseñanza  antirracista de la herencia africana en Puerto Rico (2013) and  Scripts of Blackness: Race, Cultural Nationalism and US Colonialism in Puerto Rico (2015,  winner of the Frank Bonilla best book award).

Mariluz Franco-Ortiz, PhD

Investigator at the Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies

University of Puerto Rico- Cayey

Speaker Biography:

Dr. Mariluz Franco-Ortiz is currently Co-PI of the Visualizing Afro-dignity Project and Researcher of the Mellon Program titled: Invigorating Scholarly Communities at the Institute of Interdisciplinary Research, University of Puerto Rico, Cayey.  Dr. Franco-Ortiz completed a Ph.D. in Social-Community Psychology at UPR Río Piedras and has 25+ years of experience implementing best training practices in student and faculty development programs in projects related to education, psychosocial research, racism, research integrity, and youth violence prevention. She has also led community-based projects promoting gender, racial, and social justice through her enthusiastic commitment with Colectivo ilé, a grassroots organization that fosters leadership with women through anti-racist education.

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