‘I’M FINALLY EMBRACING MY FACE’
Suzanne Samaka, 33, Is a mum of two and stepmum of four from Watford, and founder of the hashtag #Honestyaboutediting.
Having kids of my own made me realise that the things I do online can affect them, too. A couple of years ago, I’d struggle to upload an Instagram selfie that wasn’t filtered. But the more I disguised my wrinkles behind airbrushed effects, the more I noticed the imperfections on myself. As a then 32-year-old woman, if it was impacting my self-image, what must it be doing to younger generations?
Sitting on the train, I remember seeing a teenage girl using her heavily filtered phone camera as a mirror. I realised that the harder it becomes to look at ourselves without effects, the worse our body image will get. Chats with my stepkids further increased my worries.
The pressures they face both in person and online when it comes to body image are phenomenal, and unlike any experience I had at their age. I decided I needed to set an example for them, and ditched the filters on my pictures.
Going filter-free has made me embrace my real face and feel more self-confident. I don’t even like the filtered pics any more, because they don’t look like me. But I’m an adult, and young people growing up in the internet era don’t know any different, and might find it harder to distinguish between what’s real and fake.
In April 2021, I was scrolling through Facebook, reading my friend’s worries about their daughter’s body woes. I decided enough was enough and set up a petition to change the law so that posts with filters have to be labelled on social media. This is already the case for influencers in Norway and will soon be coming into effect here for influencers’ adverts, but I think it should apply to all users.
As my campaign gained attention, I started the hashtag #Honestyaboutediting and began getting attention from body positivity campaigners, MPS and members of the public. I’ve still got a way to go, but knowing that so many people agree is a huge boost to the campaign. Young people need to know that these filters create unrealistic beauty standards, and love themselves as they are.
✱ Suzanne’s campaign can be found at change.org/changesocialmedialaws
‘I needed to set an example’