Being locked up in our homes for a year has us all a little stir crazy in more ways than one. Thanks to platforms like TikTok and Instagram, we've been able to keep in touch with our extended family and friends, and there have been plenty of opportunities for some silly escapism. One thing that really gained traction? Social "challenges." Everything from funny dances to pranks has swept the web, but a recent challenge, the "silhouette challenge," is one parents really don't want their daughters doing — and it's not even the nature of the challenge that's most concerning.
For those who don't know, the silhouette challenge begins with a person on camera in a sloppy outfit, like a robe and hair in a towel.
The remixed tune of Paul Anka's crooner "Put Your Head On My Shoulder" plays and when the beat drops, so do the frumpy clothes. Women stand in their doorways in underwear or nothing at all, and are blacked out by a red filter that gives off the seductive tease of a sexy, you guessed it, silhouette.
Of course, most parents are deeply uncomfortable with the thought of their teen participating in anything that hypersexual and public.
But the reality is, teens are just discovering their own sexualities and sensualities, and it's going to be tempting for them to participate. The scariest part of the challenge isn't that it is hypersexual, it's what predators on the internet are doing with it.
On YouTube, there are currently dozens of tutorials on how to digitally remove the red filter.
Meaning without the silhouette challenger's consent, people on social media can use Google and in less than five minutes, watch a tutorial on how to remove the red filter, exposing the naked or scantily clothed body.
The search is so popular that it comes up on the Google autofill, and one of the how-to videos has, according to Rolling Stone, over 223,000 views.
YouTube has even served ads on some of these videos, which do occasionally feature de-filtered images, which means the video company is profiting off of this.
That's an apparent violation of its own guidelines, which state that YouTube users cannot depict images that are “non-consensual sex acts or unwanted sexualization.”
Google, which owns YouTube, also told Rolling Stone in a statement: “TikTok videos that contain nudity can not be re-uploaded to YouTube, as they violate our adult content policies. Additionally, we will remove content uploaded to YouTube that has been altered to reveal participant’s bodies in a way that was not intended by the original uploader.”
It's a horrifying concept, being violated in that way, but this does present moms with an opportunity to talk about consent.
Rather than focus on victim blaming or sexuality shaming, moms can take this opportunity to talk about how important it is for women to demand consent and how no one has the right to take it away from them.
Though no one is saying that teens have a "right" to do this challenge, warning them of the dangers rather than shoving a blatant "don't do it" down their throats is the right way to approach it. And, be sure, to also remind them that the biggest issue is the folks violating these women's rights, not the adult women owning their sexuality.
