>>6928There's a reason for that.
1) Sinnoh and the regions before it were based on Japan. The country is about 98% ethnic Japanese. It's possible to live in Japan and never see a black person irl.
2) Skin color of people living closer to the equator tend to be more tan/dark, while people living closer to the poles will have lighter skin. Sinnoh is currently the northernmost region in the series, so the light skin makes sense.
Also:
>token Asian gym leader>in an Asian gameTake your political correctness elsewhere.