Will Your Melanin Protect You From The Sun?
There are lots of misconceptions about dark skin and sunshine. One of the most common? That black people can't get skin cancer.
For many people, the dog days of July mean grabbing an ice pop, lounging outside, and letting the summer sun hit your skin. And for people of color, we're often doing those things sans sunscreen. After all, our melanin will protect us. Right?
Not so fast.
This week on Ask Code Switch we're taking on a question from Liz Mitchell, from New York. She writes:
"Dear Code Switch,
I'm biracial, and my black family don't use sunscreen – if anything they use oil at the beach. My white mom has always been all about sunscreen. I used to be like, 'I got melanin, I'm fine.'
