Colorism is a form of discrimination based on skin tone wherein people with light(er) complexions are advantaged over those with dark(er) ones. In this review, we define key terms, explore colorism as an individual and structural phenomenon, and identify some predominant themes in the existing scholarship on colorism. We review three case studies of contemporary uses and ramifications of colorism in order to encourage scholars to engage with this important field. These case studies are skin tone’s impact on U.S. politics, “transraciality,” the appropriation of skin tone, and finally, the global skin lightening industry. While the first two are mostly focused on the United States, the third enables an appreciation of the global dynamics of colorism, and links back to the national and regional contextual politics of skin tone.

色彩主义是一种基于肤色的歧视形式，其中肤色较浅的人比肤色深的人更有优势。在这篇评论中，我们定义了关键术语，探索了作为个体和结构现象的色彩主义，并确定了现有色彩主义学术研究中的一些主要主题。我们回顾了当代使用和色彩主义后果的三个案例研究，以鼓励学者参与这一重要领域。这些案例研究是肤色对美国政治的影响、“跨种族”、肤色的挪用，最后是全球美白行业。前两个主要集中在美国，而第三个则使人们能够了解色彩主义的全球动态，并与肤色的国家和地区背景政治联系起来。