The Desire for Whiteness: Can Law and Economics Explain It?

Shilpi Bhattacharya, O.P. Jindal Global University

Abstract

This paper provides a new theoretical perspective on colorism by considering it from an economic point of view. It relies on three theories of law and economics that explain racism. While critiquing these theories, it also extends them to evaluate colorism. Because these theories correlate race with skin color, in order to apply these theories to colorism, it distinguishes colorism from racism using the “desire for whiteness” (DFW) as a tool for analysis. Further, this paper provides a comparative perspective of colorism in the traditional American labor market (ALM) and the Indian arranged marriage ‘market’ (IAMM). It finds that: (a) these theories are able to provide some insights into why decisions in these markets are colorist, (b) the insights are incomplete and do not fully explain the complexities of colorist interactions though they do explain some of its history, (c) applying these theories to the IAMM strengthens these theories – the statistical theory for instance, is better able to explain discrimination in IAMM than in ALM, (d) only McAdams’ status production theory is able to deliver an account of DFW. It concludes that a legal framework relating to colorism should aim to eliminate DFW from society.