Kim Kardashian has long been vocal about her struggles with psoriasis. She's unapologetically posted photos of her flare-ups for everyone to see, and has never shied away from clapping back at trolls who make fun of the condition. So when she announced her upcoming KKW Beauty body launch, the reactions were, of course, mixed. On one hand, supporters were happy that Kardashian would be creating a product that covers the blemishes and other marks that many women feel insecure about. On the other, some felt that she was furthering the narrative of self-hatred.
Actress and advocate Jameela Jamil was one of those people. She responded to Kardashian in a powerful tweet, encouraging women to "make peace" with their imperfections instead of trying to cover them.
When Kim Kardashian tweeted a video of her upcoming body makeup, body-positivity advocate Jameela Jamil was all but thrilled.
"Hard pass," she tweeted. "God [redacted] the work to take it all off before bed so it doesn’t destroy your sheets… I’d rather just make peace with my million stretch marks and eczema. Taking off my mascara is enough of a pain in the arse. Save money and time and give yourself a [redacted] break."
Fans lobbed into her mentions in agreement.
Women concurred and expressed their own beliefs that skin imperfections are simply a part of life and shouldn't be hidden.
"Scars are beautiful because they come with stories. Some are joyous stories and some are horrible, but those stories are part of what makes us who we are. Why are we trying to cover the visual evidence that we lived a life? Thats all scars and wrinkles are, indicators of life," a supporter tweeted.
Even women living with psoriasis expressed their disappointment with the upcoming release.
A Jamil supporter who also suffers from the same condition as Kardashian feels that the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star is encouraging women to hate their bodies with the new launch.
"Omg I've been waiting for you to respond to this! As a woman who struggles with psoriasis it saddens me that another woman with psoriasis and with a platform is showing other women that they can't just accept their bodies they must alter it?" she lamented.
While others posed the question: How is body makeup any different from other types of makeup?
"Why is mascara or face foundation sensible but body make up bad?" someone asked Jamil.
The actress quickly snapped back, "Are you suggesting mascara is as hazardous and expensive as full body make up? Also larger people will have to pay more to cover these marks they are made to feel self conscious about… I would say there’s a significant difference…" she responded.
Some felt that Jamil had overstepped boundaries.
While it's hard to disagree with Jamil's criticism of diet products, many people felt this issue wasn't so white and black.
"I completely understand when you comment on diet products and harmful things, but I don't understand why ur telling people what makeup they should buy? I'm kind to myself and love myself, and if I choose to spend money on some body highlight I can too?" someone asked.
Jamil was accused of shaming women who may want to use the makeup.
"Honestly I get ur whole self love approach but there’s a woman out there who probably looks up to u that’s going to feel bad for wanting to use this after seeing ur reaction. self love is saying I acknowledge these stretch marks, but I also know when I don’t want them on show," someone noted, mentioning women's abilities to both accept their scars and want to minimize their appearance.
This all poses the question: Should we allow women to make their own makeup decisions without judgment? Or do products such as body foundation promote an impossible body ideal?
"People wear foundation on their face by choice. Why are people telling others what makeup they're allowed to buy?? It's like telling me I shouldn't ever straighten my hair coz my curls are beautiful. Ik they are, still want straight hair sometimes," another critic said.
What are your thoughts? Is KKW Beauty's Body Makeup yet another tool to shame women for having flaws? Or should we embrace women wearing as much makeup as they want, even if it's on their body?
