It’s been a while. And by ‘while,’ I mean…well. Who’s counting?! I have several goals for the new year including getting back in to nail art and blogging!
The main thing keeping me busy has been my polish line, and today’s post is a short lesson in decorum. This won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but it is important to me.
My business – Wicked Polish – has an Instagram account all its own (@WickedPolish). The following was posted on a photo of my two newest polishes, a duo of duo chrome flakes called Fook Mi and Fook Yu.
Upon swatching these beauties the first time, I sent a picture to my friends, one of whom exclaimed, “Fook me, those are gorgeous!” Ever the appropriate gentle women (hah!), we decided the pair should be named after the twins in Austin Powers (rather than F*** Me and F*** You. You’re welcome, parents of children!).
The duo sold out quickly (don’t worry, they’ll be back!) before Christmas. They were popular and when people get to use them, I’m sure they’ll love them even more. One customer even sent me a funny short story about her holidays and the polishes she bought.
This weekend, though, I woke up to the following comment on Instagram:
Sadness in my heart. I deleted the comments (s/he abruptly began yelling at me) and DM’ed the poster because I feel that sort of conversaction isn’t something that’s appropriate for my business site. Now, this blog post isn’t about whether I’m racist or not (spoiler alert: I’m not). It isn’t about whether you think these names were or are racist (if you think they are, please read to the end before we talk about it). This post is about how to appropriately broach a serious topic.
Had this poster been willing to engage in a respectful conversation with me, I would have heard them out. I am embarrassed to think that people might believe anything about me or what I stand for is racist…it simply isn’t the case. Had they not thrown hash tags accusing me of racism, referencing real or perceived acts of law enforcement violence against people of color, I would have been more likely to listen to their perspective. Instead I recommended they watch Austin Powers and rethink the lens through which they perceive the world. I can’t change the poster’s mind about me, but it would have been nice to have a teeny bit of respect to start the conversation off with.
If you have a legitimate point to make, if you want to convey your opinion or thoughts on social media to random strangers whom you know NOTHING about, start with some respect and decency. I guarantee it will get you farther.
rylee
wickednails 