The Skin Positivity Movement

Community and Skin Acceptance

Contrary to pop culture, Skin Positivity is fundamentally based on the idea that the appearance of one’s skin does not define one's identity. The Skin Positivity Movement also works against the trivialization of common skin conditions by providing a social space online to share narratives and emotional experiences. It also seeks to include people with skin conditions into conceptualizations of beauty.

Furthermore, the Skin Positive Movement examines the psychological dynamic between low self-worth and skin conditions. It works to dismantle negative stereotypes placed on people with skin conditions, especially acne. As a solution to the social isolation that many people with skin conditions face, skin positivity homes in on individuals living with skin conditions and includes them into a larger community. The Skin Positivity Movement classifies conventional beauty standards, objectification, and idealism as oppressive and aims to liberate individuals by providing content and opening dialogues about why human identity should be informed by the quality of character rather than appearances and beauty standards. Skin positivity believes that appearance is unrelated to human worth, and it argues that humans only associate the two because of societal conditioning, not instinctually.

Skin positivity also asserts that the existence of beauty standards requires people to be displeased with themselves. It argues that beauty standards feed into a larger economic superstructure that allows corporations, particularly those in the beauty industry, to exploit and perpetuate the insecurities of others. Therefore, skin positivity views structures like beauty standards and the information systems that spread them as inherently exploitative and dangerous to mental health. Because beauty standards are everchanging and partial to certain features, they are deemed as exclusive, degrading, and divisive.

For that reason, the ideology seeks to liberate and to help all people accept their authentic and entire selves.  According to the ideology, after transcending social conditioning, the individual realizes their inherent beauty and worth apart from appearance, emerges into reality, and unifies with others who have also. From there, they are set on an individualized path of self-liberation free from mental exploitation.

Similarly, skin positivity does not project self-acceptance as a victory but as an ongoing and ever-changing journey and process of discovery. It also advocates for normalizing imperfections in mass media and society.

Skin positivity also views events like classism, fascism, colorism, racism, and homophobia as cruel and egregious, and categorizes them as social ills that are also related to concepts of image-based worth and ascribed value.

Discrimination and Mental Health

Self-esteem forms during childhood, especially throughout adolescent and teenage years.  8 in 10 teenagers worldwide live with acne, and teenage years are also when skin conditions typically form. Additionally, this is the time when humans are largely confronted with pressures from the media and social situations to attain beauty standards. Given human development and society’s inevitable impact on it, there is no easy way to separate physical appearance from self-worth. As maintained by skin positivity, this is one of the greatest and most inevitable challenges to self-realization.

Self-perception is also formed by the opinions of peers, images on social media, television, and film. As pop culture has an unfavorable outlook on skin conditions, this causes people to have a negative perception of skin conditions, including the people who have one themselves.

Many times, this exposure to prejudice induces trauma and leads those with skin conditions, especially acne, to behaviors such as skin picking, self-mutilation, suicidal ideation, or restrictive eating. Because self-esteem is so currently attached to appearance, many of those living with skin conditions also form illnesses such as OCD, major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety, panic disorders, body dysmorphic disorder, eating disorders, etc., or become vulnerable to abusive relationships.

Through the lens of skin positivity, ideas of image-based worth consequently pose a threat to public safety and even public health because they provide a false justification for harassment and provoke mental illnesses. In order to influence public perception and to appeal to the morality and compassion of others, the movement also seeks to educate others about the human experience of having a skin condition through social media, literature, and social events.

History

In 2004, Unilever launched Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty which was a worldwide commercial and billboard marketing campaign with the mission of building confidence in women and young girls. The campaign was focused on the consumer rather than the product, and it consisted of corporate research and 3 years of strategic outreach. The mission statement of the campaign was "to make women feel comfortable in the skin they are in, to create a world where beauty is a source of confidence and not anxiety."  The campaign featured photos of “everyday” women in their natural states along with reaffirming statements. Given that Unilever did not create a community around the campaign’s message but worked to create a 2 billion dollar increase in Unilever’s revenue, this campaign was not definitive of skin positivity because the idea of community is central to the Skin Positivity Movement. However, it was the first major instance of a major beauty corporation enforcing what consumers look like rather than what they do not look like.

Brands such as ZitSticka and Banish have also had a major influence on including consumers into the skincare market by using consumer POV marketing and by creating a skincare market specifically for those who live with acne.

Although acne is the most common skin condition affecting 50 million adults each year, acne has historically received little attention from society and even the medical community as a serious health condition. In 2009, The American Acne and Rosacea Society (AARS) declared June as National Acne Awareness Month. Initially, the holiday was dedicated to improving the visibility of AARS and educating clinicians about ways better serve patients who have acne. But because "teens and patients with acne are perceived by both teens and adults as less successful in life, less happy, and less outgoing than teens who do not have acne," Acne Awareness Month also highlights the need for more quality information for individuals with acne.

Recently, Acne Awareness Month has also become a time for those living with acne to commemorate self-love, the purpose of acne positivity, and to celebrate the community across social media. In 2010, Cassandra Bankson, a former model, posted her “Foundation Routine for Acne: How To Cover Up Pimples, Scars, Cystic Acne, Blackheads, and Oil video, and to date, the video has garnered a viewing of more than 23 million. Within the video, Bankson detailed how the social stigma around acne had been a great detriment to her self-esteem, self-worth, and social life. She began the video with a full face of makeup and described taking off her makeup as “one of the most insecure things she could do.” In an effort to show solidarity and to provide resources for others living with skin conditions, Bankson revealed her real skin with severe cystic acne and created the video. Bankson was the first YouTuber to enter the beauty space with cystic acne. And as time went on, Bankson’s message evolved and worked to normalize acne and skin conditions. She began to work with major brands and has been an advocate for equity and inclusion when it comes to skin conditions and diversity. Bankson has played a major part in expanding skin positivity into the mainstream and into the corporate world.

Bankson is now a medical esthetician and skincare influencer who is at the forefront of the Skin Positivity Movement. As a former sufferer of acne herself, she is an expert on acne recovery. Cassandra often challenges mainstream ideas about skincare and beauty by providing scientific information to her followers. On her YouTube channel, Cassandra has done several reviews of skincare products, especially for those with oily skin or acne. Bankson’s platform conveys that skincare should be a journey to skin positivity and self-love rather than a fight for flawless skin. She is known for being a source of encouragement, and she concentrates on building a community around those who have skin complications. Her content aims to empower her audience against exploitation by educating them about skincare ingredients and problematic marketing tactics. She also actively publishes written narratives of community members around the world on her website and YouTube Community forum.

References

This article "The Skin Positivity Movement" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:The Skin Positivity Movement. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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