Beyonce has just released her fourth studio album and the cover shows her skin much lighter and hair blonder than what god gave her.  Many critics are calling her out on such a blatant affront to her identity as a black woman and to women of color everywhere.  And it’s not the first time.

The skin lightening rumors started back in 1998 and by the time she released the hit video duet with Shakira in 2007, both women looked exactly the same: light golden skin, blonde hair, slim but busty.

In 2008, the cosmetics company L’Oreal was caught photo-shopping Beyonce’s skin whiter for one of their ads. Beyonce has also let her skin be darkened to appear more “African” for a magazine ad.

Beyonce is the most recent artist taking heat for changing her skin color, but this practice is common among models, musicians, and celebrities from the late Michael Jackson to Aishwarya Rai, an Indian Actress. Recently, an Elle magazine cover featured Rai whose skin had been digitally whitened in the photo.  In Bollywood, top actresses were once curvy and a range of skin shades. Now, they are all fair, skinny, and are chosen for their green or blue-ish eyes — or they wear colored contact lenses.

Today, Hollywood may love Halle Berry with her light brown skin tone, but obviously black actresses by and large don’t make the A-list.  Women of color across the world spend a lot of money, time and emotional energy on treatments to achieve an appearance that the Western world defines as perfection: usually blonde, thin, light skinned and with European features.

Beyonce has been sending young girls and women mixed messages for years.  On one hand she works to empower women to be strong, independent, and to love themselves and their bodies through her music, her brand, and her philanthropic work.  But at the same time she is sending subtle messages that whiter is better.

Beyonce and other celebrities are in positions of extreme influence over young women.  It is sad that they let themselves be manipulated to fit racist, outdated ideals of beauty.

But, while these celebrities clearly carry personal responsibility, this is not a personal matter. The black community has always been force fed messages that say black is ugly, black is unnatural, black is shameful.  Until enough people in the public eye shun these skin altering practices in favor of outspoken appreciation of their bodies, the next generation of young women will have to continue fighting the same battles.