Happy “Turn Beauty Inside Out Day” and Make The World Better

Today is…

Turn Beauty Inside Out Day

Turn Beauty Inside Out Day was created by New Moon magazine, a magazine for girls, in response to People magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People” list. In the past, New Moon has published a list of “25 Beautiful Girls” to counter People’s list, where they focused on the inner beauty characteristics of “good works, good heart, and activism.” They also encouraged young girls to create video, audio, or web or print ads that showed inner beauty and suggested that they get them to local media and enter them in a contest they held.

The goal of the day is to shift the definition of beauty from outer beauty to inner beauty. It exists to promote awareness for issues that girls face, particularly by recognizing the negative pressures put on them by the media, such as the need to be thin. Thin people get the majority of roles on television, and are depicted as successful, attractive, and accepted, and this can have a great effect on girls. The media influences how girls and women feel about themselves, and about how boys and men feel about females. According to the National Institute on Media and the Family, by the age of 13, fifty-three percent of girls aren’t happy with their bodies, and the number rises to seventy-eight percent by age 17. The majority of those who suffer from an eating disorder are girls or young women, and negative images from the media can encourage these eating habits. On Turn Beauty Inside Out Day, we focus on raising awareness about the negative influences of media and work to build positive body images for girls.

There are various ways to celebrate the day. One suggested way is to wear your shirt inside out. If people ask about why you are wearing it that way, let them know about the day and why it is important. You could celebrate the day by sending a card or message to a friend or family member telling them what characteristics of their inner beauty you admire about them, such as courage, dedication, sense of humor, or their care for others. Or, you could write a letter or email to a magazine or newspaper about the topic. Ultimately, the day may be best spent by having conversations. Talk to others about the media’s impact on expectations for young girls and women. Talk to young people about inner beauty, body image, and the role the media plays. You also should reflect on your own views about body size and shape.