Why Did Michael Cover Up His Vitiligo Instead of Letting it Be?

[NatureCriminal7896]

Deleted

[Anna]

Michael was bullied when he was growing up, which resulted in him developing a negative view of his appearance. Being black and having a condition that turns your skin white would be psychologically damaging for anyone, let alone the most famous and scrutinised black artist on the planet. That level of fame and attention combined with Michael's shyness, body image issues and vitiligo, it's no surprise he wanted to cover it up. I'm sure he wanted to avoid the cruel headlines and people staring at his skin condition instead of focusing on his art.

[Spike J]

I mean, he was the biggest star in the world and his image alone was the center of his celebrity. I don't think MJ was a very confident person on his own and the vitiligo aggravated that low self steem regarding his looks for sure. He would be too self conscious of the blotches. I recall that Teddy Riley also mentioned MJ being self conscious of his changed face aswell.

[ManBehindTheMirrOr - Dona]

I can obsolutly understand that michael wanted to cover up his skindesease.
He was a proud black man.

The only mistake was to not admit it four years earlier.
But when he admitted it the evil media should have take this seriously and belive it cause the evidence was absolutly there to find in pictures!
I absolutly hate the media for spread the the skinbleaching lie and that MJ don't wanted to be black til his death!
This must have absolutly hurt Michael.

[mj_frenzy]

The only mistake was to not admit it four years earlier.

Why it was a mistake that he did not admit it four years earlier?

Even if he did that, most people/media would still not have believed him in late ‘80s.

[Elton-Cetera]

[Elton-Cetera]

[Mikky Dee]

Everyone handles things like this differently. I don't think it's up to us to question or judge how Michael chose to deal with it. The times were much different in the seventies and eighties.....not enough was known about so many diseases, disorders and conditions; people were discriminated against because of a general lack of understanding. Michael did say in his interview with Oprah in 1992 that he had vitiligo and he tried to explain what it was, but there were many people who had never heard of it and/or didn't believe that he had it, preferring to believe something ridiculous was going on, such as skin bleaching. It is better understood, now, because of him and because of others like Winnie Harlow, who have tried to educate the world about it.

[SilkySnare]

As others have said, those were different times. The race issue was a lot bigger and prominent than it is today. The fact that he was black and so successful was brought up a lot. These days, if a black person becomes super successful, almost nobody focuses on their race. And if they do it is in a joking manner.
I mean, just look at the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990 - 1996). I've just started re-watching the show and the whole race thing is almost a central focal point of every episode. A show like that would have a lot less impact and significance today. And that was the 90'! Michael was blasting it even before that!
So it's not just a skin condition for a "normal" person, it's a skin condition for Michael Jackson in the 80' and 90'. Of course he tried to cover it up, it is the only reasonable thing to do.

I feel super proud of him when I look at his later public appearances. He just didn't give a crap anymore and showed off his snow-white skin with pride. That must have taken a lot of growing and building. The only thing I don't really understand is why he would put on so much lipstick and wear such unrealistic wigs. Sure, the long hair and the glasses were used to hide his face, I get that. But he really should have picked a more natural looking wig. That hairline was just a perfect arch and looked weird for a man in his 50'.
Also, the pictures where he wasn't perfectly shaved....I freaking LOVE that!

So yeah...vitiligo really sounded like something made up. Of course people chose to believe that an eccentric man bleached his skin rather than having a disease with a funny name that nobody ever heard of.

[MJJuniorSinceMW]

- Why do people wear fancy clothes?
- Why do people, especially girls/women use makeup, eyeliner, lipgloss, etc?
- Why do people have special hairdos?
- Why do people cover up pimples, spots, etc.?
- Why do people care about their look anyway?

People have the right to express themselves. Especially they have the right, to do something/anything if they think they look better & they therefore feel more comfortable in there skin (no pun intended).

Michael felt he needed to cover up his condition, so be it, it's his right. It was the 80's & 90's.

I don't get it: millennials & youth in general nowadays are trying so hard to be/or to come across as oh so tolerant.
But oftentimes it feels like the world is becoming more intolerant by the minute.

If y'all are oh so tolerant, then don't be tolerant only for one side. Let all people enjoy this tolerance.

One example: I can't stand pupils laughing at classmates who can't afford expensive clothes, or brands.
But I also can't stand people who bitch about others who have the money & who can afford themselves something that others may not.
If i can't afford to drive a porsche, i don't need to bash or hate on people who can & will spend the money on such a luxury car.

Sorry for my rant. But that is something i see a lot on social media & in forums like this.

Tolerance goes both ways!

Back on topic: MJ had every right to do what ever he wanted, concerning the way he wanted to look.

[Nantucket Cat]

The times were much different in the seventies and eighties.....not enough was known about so many diseases, disorders and conditions; people were discriminated against because of a general lack of understanding. Michael did say in his interview with Oprah in 1992 that he had vitiligo and he tried to explain what it was, but there were many people who had never heard of it and/or didn't believe that he had it, preferring to believe something ridiculous was going on, such as skin bleaching.

This is so true and important to keep in mind when discussing this topic. This was a time when AIDS was a new thing that people didn't understand, a lot of people still thought you could catch cancer from people, and so on. Knowledge about medical conditions (especially among the general public) was not what it is now.

[Ctracy34]

He was already concealing the acne he was dealing with during the time of the outbreak in the late 70's. On top of already being one of the most recognizable faces in the entertainment industry, the rough transition into young adulthood was only magnified for him. The only real photos released publicly of his condition before his diagnosis came out in the 2000's, which was a promo photo from 1978 and some behind-the-scenes shots of him removing his zombie makeup during the filming of "Thriller" in 1983.

[White Nights]

Unfortunately, I think he may not have realized early on just how much the vitiligo would affect his appearance/he was in denial about it. He used his wardrobe and makeup to hide the first signs of the disease (the white glove is an example of this, as the splotches first appeared on his hands) and probably he figured it would either only affect some parts of his body or progress very slowly. As the disease became more advanced and difficult to hide, then his low self-esteem kicked in and he began seeking ways to alleviate the symptoms. That meant making drastic changes to his appearance. It was just bad luck that his vitiligo was so pervasive and aggressive.

Couple that with the Pepsi burns and lupus, as well as the bullying he experienced from his father and brothers, I’m not surprised he was so guarded about his looks and reluctant to talk about it.

[Robbsaber01]

Its simple. We know how horrible the media treated him. Now imagine having to deal with his Vitiligo publicly years before he officially mentioned it. Also, keep in mind the world wasnt as accepting as it was back then to this. Models today being an advocate for Vitilgo wouldve been really tough 30+ years ago. Im not saying Mj couldnt of done it, but I completely understand his decision to hide it for as long as he could.

[Themidwestcowboy]

I's easy saying that when you're not the most famous man alive as he was at that time. He was also very self conscious. I wished he had told about it sooner though.