‘Selfie culture’ is a thing, whether you like it or not. Oxford Dictionary said so. While some deride it as a narcissistic symptom of internet inhabitants, some find the practice of a taking a selfie – a picture you take of yourself, popular mainly on Instagram – empowering and celebratory.
Last week, Slate ran a piece claiming that the selfie is a powerful tool for teenage girls to feel pride in themselves:
If you write off the endless stream of posts as image-conscious narcissism, you’ll miss the chance to watch girls practice promoting themselves—a skill that boys are otherwise given more permission to develop, and which serves them later on when they negotiate for raises and promotions.
In response, Jezebel ran an article claiming that selfies aren’t empowering at all – that they’re a cry for help.
In real life, walking up to a stranger, tilting your head downward at a 45-degree angle, duckfacing, pushing your tits together, and screaming “DO YOU THINK I’M PRETTY!” would be summon the authorities. On the internet, it’s just how people operate.
In response to all this internet chatter, the hashtag #FeministSelfie started trending on Twitter. Unconventionally attractive women, who are self-identified feminists, started taking pictures of themselves as a form of empowerment; being narcissistic, but still feminist.
It is a powerful medium, when you think about it. If you don’t adhere to the mainstream beauty standard, you can display your image on a public platform regardless.
Mikki Kendall said it best on Twitter:
Actually can we talk about what #selfies mean to people who never get a chance to see themselves in mainstream media?
— Mikki Kendall (@Karnythia) November 21, 2013
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