A mother in the US has highlighted a disturbing practice of school photographers to airbrush children for their class pictures. Posting about her daughters school pictures, Sam Walker shared an image of the form she needed to fill out where parents can select from two different options of ‘retouching’.
‘The girls have their school photo today and there is the option to AIRBRUSH the picture!,’ Walker tweeted. ‘There are two levels offered!! What the....?! Have complained! What 8-year-old needs to be paranoid about an “uneven skin tone”’
The picture shown illustrates that basic retouching is offered, which ‘removes blemishes’ as well as premium retouching which includes ‘basic plus whitens teeth and evens skin tone. The post has since received over 11,000 likes and been picked up by celebrities such as Myleene Class and Jameela Jamill.
But the most intriguing replies? Those of parents who have been offered the same thing. ‘My 4-year olds first ever school photo this month. This is also an option.’ one Twitter user replied. ‘I was gobsmacked then disgusted. Who photoshops school photos? Lunch cardigan stain, dishevelled hair, Face graze from fall at lunch time…That makes it a school photo.’
Speaking to Metro US, Walker explained that her daughter has a rare auto-immune condition that causes skin lesions and yellow teeth – something her and her husband have worked hard to ensure their daughter does not feel insecure about.
‘The thought of her feeling that she should airbrush those blemishes out because she should look like everyone else,’ Walker mused. ‘When you have a child who has some issues and so to suggest we can wipe that away you can look like everyone else is incredibly dangerous and very sad.’
According to the school in question, which is yet to be revealed to the public, the offer is ‘standard practice among all photographers they hire for official photographs’. With Walker’s husband also confronting the photographer in question, he apparently justified the offer by saying the form is a ‘generic document used for older children too’ who may be self-conscious about acne.
Of course, said photographer is clearly forgetting that regardless of age, airbrushing pictures is a hugely damaging thing to do to ones psyche– even more so if the person is an insecure teen. And it’s not just something US schools offer, the Guardian reported way back in 2016 that the service is offered by school photography firm Cardwell & Simons. Yellow, another UK-based photography firm, also offers the service on school photos according to The Mirror.
Schools are meant to teach children to value something beyond their physical appearance
It's a disturbing lesson to teach such young children, that should they dislike their appearance they should artificially alter it. Especially in an environment where children are meant to be nurtured. Schools are places where children are meant to learn to value something beyond just how they physically look, so to normalise airbrushing in kids as young as four is hugely damaging. Especially, in the current world we live in of social media obsessed youth, where kids have instant access to such tools already on their phones and at home.
Hopefully now, with such widespread disdain for this service, some schools will sit up and listen.
Read More:
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