An angry mum has blasted a school photographer for offering to airbrush her child's class photos - and we're hardly surprised, this woman's daughter is just eight year's old!
Sam Walker, who lives in Phoenix, Arizona, was sent a form regarding her daughter's annual school pictures, which offered different levels of re-touching to parents for both individual and class photos.
The basic option offered to remove blemishes, whilst the premium version would also whiten teeth and even skin tone. Talk about feed a child's insecurities.
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Both are pretty outrageous, but imagine being the only kid in your class to not get re-touched too in the class picture.
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It's problematic all around, especially in an age when children already face the picture-perfect pressure from social media. They really don't need it in school too.
Mother-of-two Sam said on Twitter: "The girls have their school photo today and there is the option to AIRBRUSH the picture!
"There are two levels offered!! What the....?! Have complained! What 8 yr old needs to be paranoid about an 'uneven skin tone'".
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Sam, a journalist originally from the UK, has had so much support since tweeting about the outrageous form handed to her by an unnamed school in the US.
One Twitter response read: "Good grief - seriously hoping this is not a real thing but fearing it is.
"I want schools to reinforce to children that they are amazing as they are, not that they need to get airbrushed. Big 'dislike'."
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Another said: "Phew, who wants to remember their child as they actually are?
"Much better to have them edited so we can all pretend they were perfect rather than flawed humans.
"Heaven forbid we accept flaws that are out of our control as a society, much better to chase unrealistic ideals."
And a third added: "There's something awful about this. All children are beautiful and individual, with scars, hair sticking up, dodgy fringes(me!) etc.. to try to change that by retouching smacks of an inability to recognise that.
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"And we wonder why lots of young women and men have body dysmorphia?"
But our favourite response is from this Twitter user, who wrote: "I'm in my 20s now but sadly this was also in my elementary.
"One year my scar peeked over my collar and was airbrushed for our proofs, which made...no sense?
"like bro these photos are for family anyway, are we suddenly trying to hide 3 open-heart surgeries? from who? my grandma???"
Good point well made.
We all face the daily pressure of conforming to society's ideals, particularly as women who may feel the need to change themselves after seeing re-touched magazine covers and photoshopped Instagram posts. But subjecting our eight-year-olds to this sort of pressure is beyond belief.
Thanks, but no thanks.
Featured Image Credit: UnsplashTopics: Children, Life, Parenting, Twitter, Real Life
