Backlash
There was some pretty harsh vitriol from every corner of the globe. The biggest problem wasn’t that he couldn’t see both sides of the argument, it was that his daughter refused to.
If he had known what the result would be, he would never have contributed to the makeover.
Thumbs Up
Filip was a programmer by trade. He felt he had his head wrapped around most everyday tech and software.
But he was going to quickly find out that he was oblivious to not only the scope of social media but to the lengths people would go to for a thumbs up or more views.
Beautiful Girl
His oldest, Alicja, had always been a beautiful and charismatic girl. It was easy for people to like her and hang onto her every word.
Filip and his wife did everything they could to make sure their children had confidence and self love. But parents can’t control everything, and things started to change.
Hair First
The first thing he noticed was the bright or drastic hair dyes. He figured it was a new fashion trend.
His lovely girl somehow made any hue look amazing and salon-worthy. Although, it was a bit odd at how much she cycled through the rainbow. Then the videos started to appear.
Viewer Boost
Alicja would show them off with pride and boast daily about how many new followers she got on any of her many social media platforms.
They seemed to be focused on fashion and makeup but some were too "out there" in his opinion. When she asked could she do a “complete makeover”, he hoped it was to go back to her natural beauty.
New Look
Spray tans, nails, wigs, new wardrobe ... you name it, it all appeared in her bedroom.
Between that and whatever “contouring” was, he watched Alicja transform into a new person. Part of it was amazing. But, it wasn’t long until Filip and his wife saw a stranger sitting where Alicja should have been.
New Person
Whatever she was doing had changed her into a different person. It didn’t look like his daughter at all.
He was impressed by her talents in cosmetics and her skills were clear. But something felt off. His worries were confirmed only a week later when Alicja burst into tears during lunch.
Lots Of Tears
His girl cried salty droplets onto her chicken sandwich. Her glossed lips quivered. When they asked what was wrong, her emotions exploded.
She yelled about unfairness, lies, jealousy, and how “she didn’t mean it like that”. Now, he was officially worried. It didn’t matter if she was an adult. He was still her father and had to do something.
Angry Comments
She handed him her phone and pointed to the source of her suffering. As he took in each word in every comment, his eyes grew as big as dinner plates.
He looked at the side-by-side comparison photos. The makeover, despite its polished, professional salon standard had caused some friction.
Pretending
It seemed that his Alicja had angered thousands in the social media community because she was a “white Polish girl pretending to be black” – all in the name of likes, views, and money.
Filip immediately felt his understanding of the world crumble away. Her answer as to “why?” didn’t hold mustard.
Getting Angry
Alicja yelled that “she didn’t mean it that way” and she had always had skin that tanned dark in the summer. She also didn’t let the conversation continue further.
She stormed into her room and slammed the door. But the crying got worse over the next few days.
Keeping An Eye
Through his own social media, he watched as his daughter posted many more videos defending herself.
It was such a slippery slope – between creative homage versus standing on other’s identities. Some commenters said she was doing nothing wrong. Others said she had crossed a major line. He was only sure of one thing.
Begging
The percentage of people upset was significantly higher than the supporters.
He begged Alicja to just go back to one of her old looks. Or at least use her platform to raise awareness and help when it came to discrimination. Doubling down on her aggressive, stubborn stance wasn’t helping matters.
World Whispers
Filip thought they had instilled confidence in their children. But it seemed the views and likes controlled her very identity.
What could he do when the entire world was whispering in her ear? Over the weeks he watched the changes carefully – or lack thereof.
Tough Times
The new look, it seemed, was there to stay. The tears stopped. Maybe she didn’t care anymore. Maybe she was just hiding her pain?
"Making bank" was the main focus now. He kept an eye on her feeds just in case. Being a dad around all the tech was rough.