I have just ordered her autobiography. To me, she is an inspirational and intelligent beauty who stands out amongst her peers. Oprah Winfrey once said that she wished Alek had been around when she was growing up. I think that comment resonates with many women of colour like me living in the west because we are bombarded with eurocentric ideals of beauty. I love Alek because she embraces her dark skin and her African features.
Skin lightening creams are prevalent in both black and asian cultures and thank goodness we have women like Alek, Iman and Naomi Campbell who are comfortable in their own skins.
I only have sons but I still intend to expose to them images of someone like Alek as an antidote to the accepted eurocentric vision of beauty and teach them that beauty comes in all shades of colour and ethnicity.