The Kat Von D debate; Mrs T’s verdict
By the time I publish this article, the controversy involving Kat Von D with have no doubt subsided. In the beauty community, one week’s latest drama is often the next week’s forgotten news. The beauty community moves at such a fast pace, keeping up is hard. Despite this being ‘old news’ I felt I had to write something about the subject. When the drama emerged I had so many questions.
The drama involving Kat Von D, her upcoming birth and parental decisions, have resulted in one too many heated debates, accusations and name calling sessions that I prefer there to be. I have been left questioning my own response to the situation, the ethics of parenting and whether influencers ‘abuse’ their media platforms.
So what happened with Kat Von D?
Kat Von D is a mammoth influence within the beauty community. I remember watching ‘Miami Ink’ and marvelling at how cool and rebellious she was; covered in tattoos and not caring what society thought of her. After she left Miami Ink I lost track of her as a personality; I lived my own rebellious 20’s at the time. It was only in my 30’s that I rediscovered her through the makeup community.
Kat Von D has made herself a household name with her daring high-end makeup. She has stood out from the crowds with her bold use of colour and iconic black packaging. Her brand is definitely a testament to her keen artistic eye and individual sense of style.
One of a kind in the makeup community.
Many of her eyeshadow palettes are lusted over for being ‘different’ to the usual high-end neutral palettes that we are brainwashed with continually. As a girl who likes colourful eyeshadow, Kat has certainly made bold and colourful acceptable in the beauty community. However, she is a person that has courted much controversy throughout her career.
With accusations of racism being amongst the list of indiscretions and very public arguments with celebrities such as Jeffree Starr. It is obvious why people watch her tweets like a hawk waiting for the piece of drama.
Pregnancy announcement
On Saturday 8th June, Kat posted a picture of her pregnant stomach with a long post that talked about her right as a mother to make decisions for ‘her child’. I will let you read the post from Instagram.
As you can imagine, this ruffled feathers within the makeup community. I saw Kat Von D posts popping up on every makeup group. Most of the time people debated their point of view in a mature and adult fashion, however, some threads were nasty.
Things turned nasty
I saw many Kat Von D threads having to do closed because the debate about her post and vaccinations became too heated and people got personal.
What saddened me about the response was how rude some people were being to anyone who had a different opinion of their own. I witnessed people call each other a bitch and stupid all over this one post.
These are things that you wouldn’t say to someone in the street, so why say them freely online? It saddened me that people got genuinely upset because other people were calling them such names, but is Kat Von D to blame for this?
Is she responsible?
Kat Von D is not to blame for people calling each other horrid names when debating the topics of Veganism and child vaccinations. We all have our own choices in life. The debate can be done in a respectful manner without childish name calling; anyone who calls strangers names should look at themselves before they continue.
As much as Kat Von D is not responsible for other people’s name calling she is responsible for how she uses her platform. As a beauty guru, she has an influence on millions of people. Her social media platform has fans who are prepared to back her up, no matter what she does.
We all have a habit of putting celebrities on a pedestal. We believe what they say as a truth because we look up to them and idolize them. This type of influence can be dangerous and should be used with caution.
Why did she do it?
As a predominantly a beauty guru; I do not understand the need for Kat to publish decisions related to her child. Why would she post it? What would she hope to gain from it? Is it publicity, notoriety or to court controversy?
In my opinion, I believe she wants to be as controversial as possible. After all, nobody remembers drama-free celebrities. However, I feel that she has completely overstepped the mark on this one.
Parental choice
What Kat decides for her child in terms of vaccination is her prerogative. She is free as a mother to do what she thinks is best for her and her ethics. However, with potentially millions of people seeing this post; it could lead to a rise in diseases that are now thankfully rare.
I remember having mumps and how horrid it was as a child. I am glad that I can now vaccinate my children against this horrible disease. Diseases like measles, polio and rubella can kill or seriously impact a child’s future. Why would you put your child through that?
The government have tested these vaccines rigorously and would not make children have them if there was no benefit. As more and more people choose against vaccination, surely these diseases will come back.
Actions have consequences
Imagine if many of Kat Von D’s fans thought ‘Kat is against it, so I will be.’ All of those children will go without vital immunisation that protects them. These children will rely on other children who are vaccinated. If everyone went vaccine free we would have wide-scale epidemics and suffering.
I understand that with vaccination, there come possible risks. However, the percentage of children negatively affected by vaccinations is low. My children’s health is my number one priority. I do not feel the need to publish my parental decisions for everyone to see.
Attention seeking?
Every so often, when things become quiet, Kat comes out with some sort of controversy. It keeps her infamous. Much like Jeffree Starr, celebrities relay on being outrageous to stand out from the crowd.
I feel we live in such world that thrives on drama and shock tactics and it makes me sad. Shouldn’t a beauty guru focus on beauty? I understand that she has passionate beliefs but does she needs to share them?
Damage control?
Since I originally wrote this article, more has developed. Today I saw a link to a post by Kat Von D which seems to back track from her original point. This has led to people questioning whether she is worried her business will be affected by her controversial statement. Did she regret what she originally said? Did she consider the impact of such a statement upon herself and her business?
I am led to believe that Kat can be somewhat impulsive character and perhaps this is the result of that trait. We have all had moments when we have done or said things without thinking of the greater consequences. Is this an example of an impulsive mistake which she is trying to rectify? I am a firm believer of taking responsibility for your mistakes and acknowledging the effect it has on others.
Everyone makes mistakes and should be given the opportunity to work to repair what they have done. However, the important lesson is to learn from your mistakes is how to avoid them in the future. Judging by Kat Von D’s previous behaviour, I am not sure she has realised the magnitude her words and influence has, she keeps making the same mistake. Albert Einstein said ‘the definition of insanity is doing something over and over again and expecting the same result. …’
My question is will beauty guru’s ever learn that what they publish online can have massive ramifications on both themselves and others?
Do you think Kat should have posted her controversial decision? I would love to know what you think in the comments. Please remember to keep the comments kind. I love a healthy debate but I do not like meanness.
Ciao for now beauties xx
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