Hello Meltingpot Readers,
I need your help. Recently I was having a discussion with a Black male friend of mine and he was telling me that his white girlfriend doesn’t use lotion.
“What do you mean she doesn’t use lotion?” I asked, genuinely confused.
“She doesn’t use lotion after she showers,” he said, his voice tinged with resentment. “She just air dries and then gets dressed.”
I scrunched up my face in confusion. “What do you mean she just air dries? Why doesn’t she use lotion? Doesn’t everybody use lotion after bathing?”
“Apparently not,” my friend said.
“Well, why doesn’t she use lotion?” I asked.
“She said it’s too sticky,” he said.
“Too sticky?” I said, in disbelief. “What kind of lotion was she using?”
I was confused. I thought everybody greased up their body after bathing. It wasn’t an option. The body needs hydration and lotion does the trick.
“Maybe it’s a white people thing,” my friend suggested. “Maybe white people don’t use lotion.”
I stopped to think. Could this be true? I know a lot of white people but don’t necessarily know their hygiene habits. I live with a white man and he uses lotion. In fact el esposo uses extra special, extra greasy lotion because he has super dry skin. Also, the few white people I’ve lived with over the years always used lotion. In fact, my good friend, Lala is the one who introduced me to the powerhouse of all drugstore lotions, Eucerin, because her skin craves moisture.
So, no, I decided it can’t be a “white people thing” to shun lotion because all the white people I know use lotion. And high quality lotion at that. Every day. After they shower and sometimes in between showering too.
And that’s when it hit me. LaLa, el esposo, and all the white people I’ve ever lived with have something else in common besides dry skin. They’re all pretty damn woke. (They’d kind of have to be if they’re my friend.) On the other hand, my friend’s girlfriend, while definitely a friend to the Blacks, isn’t necessarily super woke. Had I discovered something here? Could you test a white person’s wokeness by asking about their lotion use? If they shower and just drip dry should we assume a basic lack of knowledge or understanding of racism, white supremacy and the horrors of ashy skin? Could/should white people use lotion in solidarity, even if they know they’ll never, ever have to deal with ashy knees and elbows? I don’t know, dear readers, and that’s why I’m asking you to weigh in.
No judgement here at all, but if you happen to be white, can you leave a comment below where you tell me how often you use lotion. Also, what kind do you use? If you feel comfortable doing so, can you also let me know why you don’t use lotion, if that’s the case for you? Also, because this is The Meltingpot, I’d like to hear from my Asian, Latina, Mixed, Native and any other non-Black or white readers about their lotion use as well. I’m totally listening and taking notes for my hypothesis connecting lotion use to wokeness. Thank you in advance.
Peace and body grease!
(P.S. It looks like both #45 and his Vice President have never used a lick of lotion in their life, thus their dull, wrinkly skin.)
