There’s something particularly unsettling about the recent #Don’tJudgeChallenge that’s doing the rounds…a trend which purports to be powered by a positive message, but misses the mark in a rather obvious and cruelly ironic way…
Here is the so called ‘best of’ just in case you don’t know what I’m on about (TOP TIP: It’s really unnecessary to watch the whole thing):
So yeah…where to begin? Well how about the start? …this whole bizarre viral trend was born from an arguable desire to encourage others “not to judge a book by it’s cover”...and I think in essence that’s a great thing! But what I can’t quite get my head around is the fact that at its core it’s just people pretending to look comically ugly…to only then reveal that; OH NO NEVER MIND, they are actually rather good looking (and also completely in love with themselves).
Call me a fuddy-duddy or whatever, but perhaps a true #Don’tJudgeChallenge would center on something other than, errrrrm, judging people based on their looks? Perhaps we could see something amazing that a person has done…whether that be a life-saving invention, a touching work of literature, a heart-warming musical performance, or even helping an old lady across the street – just anything that betters others lives in some way or makes the world a better place to be; then we could see what these people look like…and we’d witness that they are of all colours and creeds, all backgrounds and religions, all shapes and sizes…and appearance would be an unnecessary feature in an otherwise touching narrative.
But that’s not what this trend is about…and you know what it actually feels too glaringly obvious to even point out! I mean, how does this even make sense? These people are actively and obnoxiously judging people based on their looks – highlighting things that they deem to be unattractive or undesirable; spots, moles, scars, glasses, mono brows…the list goes on – and then pulling back to marvel at their own beauty as they rub their face, along with their overbearingly large ego.
How does watching these videos feel for people who have any of these so-called ‘ugly’ afflictions? Probably not great I’d imagine. Or maybe I’m wrong – maybe a teenage girl with cystic acne is watching these videos of people wiping off drawn on spots and suddenly feels fantastic…or maybe she feels put down, demoralized, and even more self-conscious by the self-rightgeous and hurtful movement that is the #Don’tJudgeChallenge.
But hey, maybe I’m wrong…these are just my thoughts, please don’t judge.
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John Lee Taggart 