Politician criticises beauty industry for appearance-related discrimination

Conservative politician and Minister for Equalities Baroness Williams of Trafford has criticised the beauty industry for promoting an “obsession with perfection” that leads to discrimination against people with disfigurements. 

Commenting on data collected by Changing Faces, a charity which supports people with a mark, scar or condition that alters their appearance, Baroness Williams told The Telegraph: “There’s an obsession in the beauty industry with perfection and many girls have got such a distorted perception of what beauty and perfection looks like.”

The Changing Faces report, My Visible Difference, surveyed 1,000 people with a “visible difference” and found that almost a quarter of said they felt self-conscious or embarrassed going out in public. 58% said they had experienced hostile behaviour from strangers as a result of their difference, and 29% said they felt depressed or anxious because of it. 

Changing Faces is calling for employers, schools, police forces and other agencies to raise awareness of appearance-related discrimination, with improved reporting procedures for victims. The charity’s Pledge To Be Seen campaign is asking brands to sign up and commit to better representing people with a visible difference. Philanthropist and burns victim Katie Piper (pictured above) is supporting the campaign.