Everyone has the right to feel comfortable in their own skin.
This is the message that Kheris Rogers, a 10-year-old girl, hopes to send with her new clothing line, Flexin’ In My Complexion.
It all started when Rogers was bullied for her skin tone. According to Mic, Rogers was bullied extensively as she was growing up:
“I’ve been bullied a lot, like in the first grade, I went to school with just four other black kids. And kids used to bully me because they weren’t used to my skin tone. There was an incident with a teacher and we had to draw ourselves and she gave us a black crayon instead of a brown crayon, and I was really upset.”
Rogers faced colorism in its worst form and may have even felt ashamed of her skin tone.
Recently, Rogers’s sister, Taylor Pollard, tweeted about her sister to brighten her day.
My sister is only 10, but already royalty ?? #FlexinInHerComplexion pic.twitter.com/pfKeHyNXCx
— Boss Babe✨ (@TaylorAndrea_) March 26, 2017
This tweet went viral, receiving over 84,000 likes. The sisters received waves of encouragement from people of many different skin tones.
ur sister is absolutely stunning! But beyond that the vid shows she has lots of confidence & spunk! We’re going 2need her strength someday!
— ShePersisted!? (@coco_cana) April 12, 2017
The sisters saw how common it was for people to feel ashamed of their skin complexion…
I grew up hating my complex. It wasn’t until I became an adult that I learned to love my dark skin. Your sister is gorgeous
— Karen Washington (@Mzkwash) May 8, 2017
…And also saw how their example encouraged others to be comfortable in their skin.
@TaylorAndrea_ thank you and your sister for encouraging my daughter who is now ???#FlexinInHerComplexion ?? pic.twitter.com/95BGqdN0OF
— tammie (@sparkle_love7) April 30, 2017
The responses to the tweet showed the sisters the severity of the problem and inspired them to act. Pollard told Mic about what inspired her sister to respond:
“Kheris really thought she was the only one going through this, but Kheris now realizes that this is a global issue… That’s what pushed Kheris, because she thought ‘If I’m feeling this way, then we want to help others who are feeling bad about themselves too.'”
So Rogers created her own clothing line, Flexin’ In My Complexion. Its primary mission is to boost people’s confidence.
Here are some of the main pieces of the collection.
Kheris now feels comfortable in her own skin, and wants others to feel the same way.
Others have started wearing her clothes, and they are showing the world that they are flexin’ their complexion.
Pollard told Mic that she hopes people, and especially younger kids, will start feeling more confident in their own skin.
“I just hope that especially for younger kids, people start to feel more confident in their skin… It doesn’t matter how dark or light you are, just knowing that it’s beautiful and that your complexion doesn’t determine your beauty.”
The sisters are planning to expand the line to get ready for summer and hope to design crop tops and fitted T-shirts.
Pollard and Rogers deserve a special thank you for bringing attention to a serious issue facing society today. We hope their line continues to grow, and that they continue to help others feel comfortable just the way they are.
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