By The Editorial Board
The standard for women’s appearances is unreasonable — we know that. But we can see it in action even more when a young woman grows up under the public eye. Recently, Millie Bobby Brown has been chastised on social media for her supposed change in appearance. Commenters and reports are saying she looks drastically older, claiming she looks more like a 40-year-old woman than a 21-year-old.
As anybody would, Brown felt hurt and betrayed by these reports and addressed her audience on Instagram. She began her start in the industry at just 10 years old. Brown reflected, “I grew up with the world, yet for some reason, people are unable to grow up with me.” Brown says that people expect her to be “frozen in time,” which places an unfair expectation on women, who face the fear of being torn apart “for simply existing” every single day. This powerful statement by Brown is something that we need to better address in our society. But it begs the question, why is our knee-jerk reaction to criticize young women rather than uplift them?
As a society, we are quick to judge young women because we can get away with it, and it is far too normalized. The second a young woman comes to the public’s attention, many people don’t pay attention to her work or craft, but her appearance. There’s an entitlement, too, that famous young women must brace themselves for this misogyny as if these comments are understandably or justifiably made.
Women in general are supported and praised by others when they are doing what they “should” be doing — for example, dressing and presenting themselves in the way the public wants them to. These young women don’t realize how quick the public can turn on them, because it was never about who they were as a public figure, but what they looked like. Of course, the public was so quick to judge, because they had an altered idea of what a woman is from the beginning. They are seen as a commodity.
This is the dark side of public scrutiny, and it is especially disheartening to see female reporters drag down young women, fueling bullying and misogyny. Why would women perpetuate the harm they should be standing against?
In many ways, this behavior is a product of a flawed society, where women can almost be pressured to bring other women down because of their own insecurity. Too often, we see women struggle to accept those who are confident and successful, leading them to target those who are the easiest to target — young women.
Every woman is bold and authentic until someone’s judgement dims their light. We need to break the cycle. Stand up and take notice when women are judged and mistreated. This is not something that only female celebrities face, but a reality for every woman navigating the world we live in. Be bold in your existence, and uplift others in the same way you choose to uplift yourself.
