Face Equality Week – My Best Selfies
This week is #FaceEquality week – an initiative by Face Equality International. “Face equality means creating a world where everybody is treated with the same respect regardless of how they look.
[image error]Image: woman with red face and short dark curly hair, wearing a floral dress and necklace, smiling.
Face Equality aims to eliminate negative social media activity, broaden representation in the public eye, stamp out appearance discrimination and challenge prejudice… so let’s make it happen.“
Many people are overlooked for employment opportunities due to our facial differences or skin conditions, and endure a lot of curiosity, ridicule, abuse and physical verbal violence because of our appearances. We are not often included in media and advertising, and when we are, it’s usually sensationalist and dehumanising.
This week I’ve been sharing #MyBestSelfies (inspired by my girl Melissa Blake who continues to post selfies when trolls tell her she shouldn’t, because of her facial difference), and writing about why I do so. It’s been fun.
[image error]Image: selfie of a woman with a red face and short dark curly hair, smiling. She’s wearing a purple dress and a purple sparkly necklace .
Selfies as a defiant political act
Selfies can be seen as vain and vapid. But feel for people with facial differences and skin conditions, they are a defiant political act – especially when they’re #NoFilter (all of mine are!). They show the world that we want to be seen, that we are not going to change our faces to conform, and that visibility is possibly. We are also making safe for other people with facial differences and skin conditions to share their photos without fear.
I dare you – especially allies without facial differences and skin conditions – to post a selfie of your real face, unfiltered. Be proud. I put a call on Twitter earlier this week for allies to show us their unfiltered, natural faces. The response was amazing – so many people shared they beautiful, natural faces. But sadly, some people told me they are still scared to show off their natural faces. We need to ensure people feel safe enough to show their natural faces, without fear of being mocked.
It took me many years to put my face on the internet. I was always worried about my image being misused, and while it was misused badly in 2013, I am very rarely trolled about my appearance. If anything, it’s praised, especially when I post outfit photos.
Ironically, this week I have received some pretty terrible trolling (I make – the trolling public – read about it here and here). This trolling told me I’m ugly, and that I should delete my social media. I am lucky to be surrounded by supportive people, and have developed strong resilience. But many people haven’t got that level of support and assurance, and trolling could push them over the edge.
Melissa Blake, who I mentioned earlier, posted selfies to defy her trolls.
During the last round of trollgate, people said that I should be banned from posting photos of myself because I’m too ugly. So I’d just like to commemorate the occasion with these 3 selfies…
