I am really wary of this whole “attractive privilege” and how it plays out because women of color, fat women, transwomen, queer women, and disabled women often have trouble recognizing themselves as attractive. What is attractive privilege and who has it? I am beautiful. My face is beautiful. But who recognizes that beauty and how does a beautiful woman (or man) wield that attractive privilege institutionally?
Because honestly, the only institutionally attractive people I see wielding serious privilege are white men and women. If attractive privilege isn’t white privilege I don’t know what is. Because in this society the only way to be seen as generally attractive is to be white and thin.
If “attractive privilege” is going to be discussed it better come with eight doses of discussion of white privilege, sexism, racism, shadism, body fascism, and who and what is considered “ugly” to whom. Let’s not forget who gets to decide what is attractive and what is grotesque.
i’m trying really hard to wrap my head around the attractive-privilege thing
and i understand that there is definitely privilege that comes with having a pretty face, like some people will be nicer to you and you will get more compliments and i understand this. conventional attractiveness is overvalued in society and because i have a nice face (and have learnt to believe that i have a nice face) i reap the benefits of this
but attractive privilege seems so tied in with other forms of privilege/oppression systems like
- thin privilege (thinness considered more attractive)
- white privilege (whiteness considered more attractive)
- class privilege (can pay for surgery/cosmetics/clothes, have more time to spend on maintaining ‘health’ etc)
- ageism (youth considered more attractive)
- ableism (abled bodies considered more attractive, the privilege of confidence based on attractiveness diminished in cases of depression/ed/anxiety/etc)
- misogyny (basis of attractive privilege coming from patriarchal values of looks over traits/values etc)
and having a privilege-system based on attractiveness without acknowledging all those factors as well seems to oversimplify the attractive/unattractive binary a lil too much
all this “attractive privilege” stuff is really annoying because it exists but, like, what is “attractiveness”
“attractiveness” is being white (or at least light skinned), able-bodied, cis, straight-passing, thin, able to maintain a certain level of style (which requires a certain amount of time and money), young, hairless, etc.
idk I guess what I’m trying to say is can we just call it what it is? I mean, who is “attractive privilege” or “attractive oppression” targeting? Because I’m pretty sure that most of the time when people talk about it they’re talking about effects of racism, cissexism, shadeism, heterosexism, fatphobia, ageism, ableism, classism, etc
what the fuck is this attractive privilege thing
I mean, I’m not particularly attractive, and there are legitimate examples of people generally considered “ugly” being turned down for jobs that generally “attractive” people are more likely to get
but that’s completely different from complaining about boys judging you on looks
I hate to break it to you, but no one is gonna date you if they don’t find you attractive
There is no real foundation for the relationship without some sort of desire, unless you meet a guy that judges solely on personality
but even then if you’re as much of a whiny bitch in real life as you are on the internet, your personality won’t do you much good
I don’t believe in “attractive privilege” because
- Beauty standards vary by every different culture and race
- People with more favorable traits are more likely to breed. This is evolution. It happens in EVERY living organism.
- The more favorably you get to know someone, the more attractive they become to you.
- Beauty is relative, not universal
