OPINION BY CARLOS FUENTES
THE BARRICADE WITHIN BEAUTY STANDARDS HAVE WE ALLOWED THE PANDEMIC TO CREATE ATTITUDES OF SHALLOWNESS THAT PROSPER IN OUR COMMUNITY?
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overing our faces to decrease off her mask because of ‘maskne’—a the spread of a virus came new term being used for mask acne. with a mystery waiting to “She got nervous showing her face”
be uncovered. Our imaginations Max said. “She kept saying, ‘you’re have circled the question of how the going to see my face now…I have person next to us looks. The made-up maskne’”. perceptions of a person’s beauty have The conversation Max and Hernandez indirectly placed standards of how a had illustrates how a person’s anxiety person should look, which has raised holds them back from showing their anxiety and shallow behavior within face. She would have rather continued our community. Thus, the protec- hiding before failing to represent tor to our health has become part of others’ perceptions of her. Luckily, a phenomenon known as mask fish- Hernandez had a wonderful friend ing where people feel ‘catfished’ after to remind her that she was beautiful seeing how a person looks under the regardless of her acne. mask.
The notion of mask fishing
There are consequences to is overlooked by many of us. Mask
the phrase mask fishing that people fishing was first introduced on TikTok. fail to comprehend. A person can be The trend started with people wearing triggered and hesitate to show their their masks and revealing their faces face because of insecurities that later in the video, the caption usually come with wearing a mask. A fifth- being “Am I catfishing?”. Chicano year student at Long Beach State, studies and anthropology student, named Angela Max, describes a time Jasmin Gonzalez, had no idea mask when she and a new friend went out to fishing was a trend. However after lunch for the very first time together. explaining what mask fishing was, she She expressed how her friend Clarissa commented on how it pushes forward Hernandez felt nervous about taking unrealistic ideals of beauty that target
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MASK FIS
HAVE WE ALLOWED THE PAND ATTITUDES OF SHALLOWNES IN OUR COMMUNITY?
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