An Instagram user is facing severe backlash on social media after she pretended to have vitiligo and did a makeup look for individuals who have the condition. For the unversed, according to the Cleveland Clinic, "Vitiligo causes your skin to lose colour or pigmentation. Smooth white or light areas called macules or patches appear on your skin."
The Instagram user, who goes by the name Rex, uploaded the video with parts of her face painted white to represent vitiligo. Later in the clip, she shows how she covered the condition with makeup to express that it is "pretty".
After this video went viral, Rex started to face backlash from netizens. In response to the criticism, in the caption of the post, she added, "I got a lot of comments I've received regarding my recent post. I want to clarify that while I don't have vitiligo myself, my intent was to create art inspired by those who do and normalise it. I drew it on my skin as I had seen it on Pinterest. I understand it wasn't my best work, and it may not have resonated well with everyone as vitligo doesn't look like this." (Also Read: Indian influencer faces backlash for mocking Chinese locals in viral video, people ask her to 'get educated')
She further wrote that through this video, she wanted to make people aware of the condition and spread skin awareness. Rex also wrote, "I aim to celebrate and highlight unique features instead of concealing them. I would have literally used concealer or painted my face full. Wait, that leads you to feel that vitiligo doesn't look pretty on its own. I was trying to normalize having it because it's not under someone's control, treating it as normal rather than something different."
Watch the video here:
{{/usCountry}}She further wrote that through this video, she wanted to make people aware of the condition and spread skin awareness. Rex also wrote, "I aim to celebrate and highlight unique features instead of concealing them. I would have literally used concealer or painted my face full. Wait, that leads you to feel that vitiligo doesn't look pretty on its own. I was trying to normalize having it because it's not under someone's control, treating it as normal rather than something different."
Watch the video here:
{{/usCountry}}This post was shared in July, however it recently started to go viral on Instagram. It has been liked by numerous people and also gained tons of reactions.
Here's how people reacted to it:
An individual wrote, "I get what you’re trying to do but vitiligo isn’t a costume. You don’t have it and can’t understand what it’s like to have it, so you can’t advocate for it. You can be an ally, but this isn’t it."
Another Instagram user, Sandy, commented, "What a weird thing to post when you don’t have vitiligo."
"As someone with vitiligo what the hell is this," posted a third.
Instagram user Stephanie McAteer shared, "I didn't know vitiligo could look like white acrylic paint."