So, Tukish airlines apparently banned their flight attendants from wearing red lipstick, or wearing red nail polish and I'm seriously outraged. Not only because I LOVE red lipstick and will defend a woman's right to wear it until the day I die, but also, since when can a company randomly decide that the color of a woman's lips is "inappropriate"?
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I get the fact that as a flight attendant you have to conform to tons of rules about how to dress, what to say, how to act, etc. It's part of the job requirement, but come one–this seems one step too far in an attempt to control your employees.
I'm not the only one who feels this way. A ton of flight attendants feel the exact same way and are NOT happy with the recent bans. A columnist with the Turkey's paper, the Daily Hurriyet has even urged women to take and post photos of themselves wearing red lipstick, dubbing it the "Red Lipstick Movement."
It seems to be a deeper issue than just one employer wanting their flight attendants to stick to boring neutral and pastel makeup shaded. Many feel like the ban is representative of the culture clash currently going down in Turkey between extremely conservative Muslims groups who have gained political power recently and the older secular groups who have run the country for years.
Oh, and by the way, this isn't the first time they have implemented rules with regards to the flight attendants appearance. Platinum blonde hair and certain shades of red hair dye have also been banned. UGH, I can not help but roll my eyes. If this was an industry dominated by men, I can assure you that no such bans concerning personal appearance would have even been considered.
Look, I understand and respect cultural differences. But where do you draw the line when it comes to an employer controlling the way their employees look?! No one has a right to tell a woman what color her hair should be, or whether or not she can wear red nail polish! It's patently absurd. I hope that the women in Turkey realize this is a step down a very slippery slope that is going no where good for them as far as their personal freedoms are concerned.
Also, I couldn't imagine having to go through even one DAY without my red lipstick. I'm obsessed. It's what I wear whenever I want to feel glamorous and beautiful. Why would you want to take that away from anyone?
Image via Flickr/TaniaSaiz
