Written by Joyce Reyes-Aguila
Did you notice that your social media feed was recently filled with black-and-white photos of (mostly) ladies? That’s because of the so-called #ChallengeAccepted campaign in support of women empowerment – trending globally in the past weeks.
In one invite to the challenge, it reads that a receiver has been chosen very carefully because she shares the same thinking: That women should take care of each other instead of criticizing one another. “We are beautiful the way we are,” it says, before asking someone to post a black-and-white photo, with the caption “challenge accepted” and mention the name of the person/s who invited her. It then requests a receiver to select 50 women in private and invite them to do the same.
Taylor Lorenz of The New York Times reports that more than three million photos have been tagged #ChallengeAccepted online as of July 27, 2020. And many more black-and-white images were posted without the hashtag, according to her piece “‘Challenge Accepted’: Why Women Are Posting Black-and-White Selfies.” The internet culture technology reporter says that this is not the first time Instagram has “leveraged black-and-white selfies in support of a vague cause.” The same challenge mechanics were posted in 2016 to support cancer awareness and, during a different point, were also used to promote positivity.
Are you a fan of the challenge? Did you post a black-and-white photo to support it? Some enjoyed finding a photo or two and found meaning in it. In Lorenz’s point of view, even if “the portraits have spread widely, the posts themselves say very little.” She likened #ChallengeAccepted to the “black square” posts that symbolize a person’s “solidarity with black people (at the height of racial tensions in the United States) but asked very little of those who shared it, the black-and-white selfie allows users to feel as if they’re taking a stand while saying almost nothing. Influencers and celebrities love these types of ‘challenges’ because they don’t require actual advocacy, which might alienate certain factions of their fan base.”
Lorenz shares other sentiments in her article, including podcast host Ali Segel’s experience of receiving backlash after declaring that the challenge is not a cause, and television writer Camilla Blacklett’s perspective that the campaign is a way for women to post attractive photos. According to the latter, selfies can be posted for no reason, Lorenz reports.
The roots of #ChallengeAccepted are also being linked to calls to end violence against women in Turkey. But CNN’s Scottie Andrew says it emanated from Brazilian journalist Ana Paula Padrão’s #WomenSupportingWomen challenge that became widespread mid-July this year. Regardless of how it started, Andrew opines in “No, the Instagram 'challenge accepted' trend did not originate in Turkey” that the movement has spread awareness on the killings of women in Turkey and the domestic abuse on women around the world that surged during lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Women have also found creative ways to define what it means for them to be part of the movement. There are black-and-white images showing faces of the weary doctors and nurses after long hours of wearing PPE. Some photos show medical frontliners geared up to take care of the sick. There are photos of women wearing masks, or in their different roles: wife, mother, daughter, sister, or friend. Some have even used the challenge to inspire others to look forward to better days post the current global public crisis by choosing photos of recent family gatherings, travels, or while in action doing sports activities or other hobbies.
So, what does #ChallegeAccepted mean for you?
