Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Entertainment
EntertainmentSports

Once Brown-Skinned, Former Cubs Slugger Sammy Sosa Is So White He’s Pink!

Posted byBy Kiersten Willis | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

 

If you thought you knew what former Chicago Cubs right fielder Sammy Sosa looks like, a new interview will make you think again.

Sosa alarmed some fans when he appeared in an interview on a July 13 ESPN Deportes special about the All-Star Home Run Derby, an interview that revealed his already lightened tone as lighter than ever.

Many made fun of the former Dominican baseball star.

Sosa, who retired from Major League Baseball after the 2007 season with 609 career home runs, eighth on the all-time list, admitted to using a bleaching cream in 2009 after photos surfaced of him looking noticeably lighter at an awards show.

“It’s a bleaching cream that I apply before going to bed and whitens my skin tone,” Sosa said at the time on Univision’s “Primer Impacto.” “It’s a cream that I have, that I use to soften [my skin], but [it] has bleached me some. I’m not a racist, I live my life happily. What happened was that I had been using the cream for a long time and that, combined with the bright TV lights, made my face look whiter than it really is. I don’t think I look like Michael Jackson.”

Several people reflected on the social implications of a once dark-skinned man having such a remarkably different appearance.

https://twitter.com/rgay/status/885592481093570560

 

 

Independent journalism doesn't fund itself.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top