Dark Girls explores the many struggles, including self-esteem issues, which women of darker skin face as a result of the colorism they have experienced, allowing women of all ages recount "the damage done to their self-esteem and their constant feeling of being devalued and disregarded.”(Haque)[3] Duke and Berry even take it a step farther and interview different groups of African American get an insight on dating preferences that are present in the African American community.

One young man interviewed saying “They [dark girls] look funny beside me.” The social conditioning that African Americans have been put through, often results in fairer complexions being preferred over darker ones.

[4] The documentary takes a look into the trend of skin bleaching, a multi-billion dollar business in which various people around the world contribute to with the belief that being lighter will bring about an overall better life.

"[6] In another 2015 interview with the Los Angeles Times, he described the purpose of the documentary as giving “a voice to the voiceless”[7] The Association of Black Psychologists wrote that "Dark Girls gives us an opportunity to take a soul-searching look at the effects of racism on the self-image of Black women personally and collectively, particularly as it relates to complexion, so that where healing is needed, we can heal; where our tools for resilience and defying the lie protected us, we can lift them up for celebration and increased use.

"[8] On May 21, 2020 it was announced that a sequel documentary titled Dark Girl 2 will premiere on June 30, 2020 on the Oprah Winfrey Network.