In defence of Unathi (and all women)
This photo of Idols SA judge Unathi Msengana with no makeup and posing with a fan went viral recently.
I must say the comments have to have been some of the harshest things I have ever read in my life.
No doubt, we all look extremely different with a face of full professional make-up vs. au naturelle but are comments like “Before and After of SA’s first Ebola victim” really necessary?
There are a few things I want to address with this Unathi issue.
Firstly, saying mean things to a celebrity doesn’t make them hurt any less than it would a ‘normal’ person. Your harsh words hurt. Sure, celebs might brush your comments off like water off a duck’s back but they actually do hurt. I have also found it funny that people can say negative hurtful things to others via social media but never to one’s face. Oh, the power of the thumbs and the online bully! I have noticed that people tend to find a certain amount of joy in saying something mean and getting numerous amounts of RT’s. Stop that! It’s playground behaviour and actually is a form of bullying.
Secondly, why the obsession with someone’s physical appearance? Mrs Msengana was and still is more than happy and comfortable with her no make-up, no weave, ‘this is me’ self. Have you ever thought that maybe Unathi has more to offer than vanity? Or that that person you call ugly has other qualities and the vanity one is not that dominant?
As a society, we put way too much emphasis on one’s physical appearance. I can only speak of this subject from the view point of a female, and I have found that males are a contributing factor to this. Often males will complain that your weave is fake, your eyelashes are fake, your complexion isn’t right and you wear too much make-up, yet when you take your weave out, remove your lash extensions, fix your skin tone and go makeup-less they’re the first to tell you that you are ugly. Females are not exempt. We take so much pride in the ‘Put Her Down’ syndrome that we forget that as women we should be standing together instead of fighting one another.
As much as you might think that someone’s appearance is ugly and not desirable, that person probably has an amazing soul. God made you beautiful and your imperfections are your beauty. Take a look at Chantelle Brown-Young. She has vitiligo and yet she embraced her imperfection and she is doing extremely well in the modelling industry.
And Unathi’s response to all this ranting and raving and negativity about her looks:
“Good morning beautiful ladies. Thank you for your love, defence and pride. I really am okay because I really have never been into my appearance. I just worry about young women because we seem to love to destroy each other. I’ve learnt that HURT PEOPLE HURT PEOPLE.”
LoadingStraight from the salon kinda #Selfie! Hairline still intact! Absolutely no make up! Coz I'm okay with ME! CAMAGU!