Three young women walk into a restaurant.
They sit down, the waitress comes over with a genuinely kind demeanor, and asks them if they want anything to drink and if they’re ready to order. They put in their order and continue gabbing.
The food comes out and they each enjoy the deliciousness, the company, and the warm day.
One of the young women pauses, and notes how nice this is.
They sit for a while longer after the bill comes, take their to go boxes and part ways.
Exactly how it should be.
This was the experience that myself,
@flawless_affect , and
@emilu222 had just last summer.
However, that is not always the experience. For individuals with facial differences, there are times, more frequent than not, often depending on the extensiveness of the visible difference, where individuals are treated poorly, stared at, even turned away from service entirely.
Not because they did or said anything to give reason for being dismissed, instead, because “what if it’s contagious” or “what if it makes other people feel uncomfortable”.
Shocking? Unbelievable?
Unfortunately, true.
Which is why this year’s theme for
@faceequalityint Week is “Seen and Served”.
Regardless of the way someone looks, they deserve the same respect, kindness, and value as anyone else. At the end of the day, we are all human and want the same service as anyone else -to be treated with dignity.
The fact that it’s 2026 and this is actually a conversation that needs to be had is sad.
Let’s do better.
[Image Description: image of three young women sitting outside on a summer day at lunch.]
![Three young women walk into a restaurant.They sit down, the waitress comes over with a genuinely kind demeanor, and asks them if they want anything to drink and if they’re ready to order. They put in their order and continue gabbing.The food comes out and they each enjoy the deliciousness, the company, and the warm day.One of the young women pauses, and notes how nice this is.They sit for a while longer after the bill comes, take their to go boxes and part ways.Exactly how it should be.This was the experience that myself, @flawless_affect , and @emilu222 had just last summer.However, that is not always the experience. For individuals with facial differences, there are times, more frequent than not, often depending on the extensiveness of the visible difference, where individuals are treated poorly, stared at, even turned away from service entirely.Not because they did or said anything to give reason for being dismissed, instead, because “what if it’s contagious” or “what if it makes other people feel uncomfortable”.Shocking? Unbelievable?Unfortunately, true.Which is why this year’s theme for @faceequalityint Week is “Seen and Served”.Regardless of the way someone looks, they deserve the same respect, kindness, and value as anyone else. At the end of the day, we are all human and want the same service as anyone else -to be treated with dignity.The fact that it’s 2026 and this is actually a conversation that needs to be had is sad.Let’s do better.[Image Description: image of three young women sitting outside on a summer day at lunch.]](https://sp1.picnob.com/p/pt_6727424320485822576959_0_079e651e810e131ed4c627b808b25fd4.jpg?o=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&h=b4f7d3a2d44c1a025c919f882ad6971c)
