Pretty Dead

Today I was having a discussion with a group of people about a twenty year old woman who was murdered by her father. As is the norm, we all agreed the murder was terrible and wished a long prison sentence on the father. The place where we parted ways was when one man implied her death was even more tragic because she was pretty.

Unfortunately, today wasn't the first time I'd heard such a thing. Just a few weeks ago a young woman was shot and media including the newspaper, television , and Facebook all made comments regarding how attractive the young woman was. That incident in addition to what I heard today made me wonder if the overriding school of thought is that ugly and mediocre women should start dying off so there will be more room for the pretty girls to live.

I first considered myself. Though I don't think I'm the hottest thing to walk the earth, I'd like to think I'm fairly attractive. I have all my limbs, my own teeth and hair, and am without extra appendages. I don't have warts, a hump in my back, or a butt for a forehead like a Klingon. However, despite the things I have going for myself in the looks department, I am no tall, thin, long-haired, supermodel. Apparently, this makes me a much less sympathetic candidate should I be tragically murdered.

It is amazing and often disturbing to me how much emphasis Americans place on physical appearance. We vote for people who are handsome or pretty despite our rhetoric about the importance of platforms and party allegiances. We are obsessed with TV shows that focus on fixing what the fashion and beauty industry deem as broken. Plastic surgery and weight loss plans, pills, and programs have taken over television and one can scarcely step outside without being accosted by the premise that there is really only one standard of beauty. It's no wonder why many of us have become desensitized to anyone who isn't "mainstream pretty". However, the images and implications with which we are bombarded fails to be a good enough excuse to devalue human life and tragedy based on physical appearance alone.

Every life is worth much and everyone is beautiful to someone. Of course, thinking of oneself as beautiful, despite what others say, is the first step in battling the nonsense. A healthy dose of self-confidence is a must-have though it is hard to fight against the machine that tells us there is only one way to be pretty. The more folks fight against the established standard, the easier it will be for others to understand that every life has worth and every life is indeed a beautiful one.