It’s been over two weeks since many influential psoriasis hashtags banned on Instagram for the second time in a year.
The Psoriasis Censorship caused a major outcry from the psoriasis community in the beginning but seemed to pay off after no response from Instagram, many have given up feeling like there will be no change.
Again, we have to ask the question why are we being punished for showing off our skin? Does my skin offend you Instagram?
I am outraged that many hashtags used by the psoriasis community had been hidden or even blocked by Instagram for a second time. Again, Instagram
What I really want to know is why I can easily access inappropriate, hateful images by searching for hashtags on Instagram but hashtags which help people in their day to day lives are banned. It just makes no sense to me!
For many Psoriasis warriors, including myself, Instagram is one of the best platforms for our community to talk and share out stories through hashtags such as #psoriasissupport and #psoriasisawareness. For me, I found so much comfort in the online community when I was first diagnosed as well as when I am feeling down about my skin. I look to the community and instantly feel better, knowing that someone else out there knows how I am feeling at that moment.
It took a long time and a lot of courage for us to share our stories and images online and create that safe place where we could feel the love and support we need. By building our online community, it has helped so many people to accept and learn to love their psoriasis.
One great thing that has come out of this, is the coming together of the community and the outrage that we shared together. Hundreds of people posted pictures of their psoriasis skin to protest the banned images showing that we will not be silent or ashamed of our condition.
The Psoriasis Association have started a petition against the censorship of psoriasis on social media (for a second time)! Make sure you sign and share it, showing Instagram that it is not okay to ban these images!
What do you think of the psoriasis censorship?