For some unknown reason, through the twentieth and twenty-first century, it has been instilled in our society that women are the only sex that can acceptably rock makeup. What the general public either refuses to acknowledge or just flat out are not aware of, is that men wore makeup just as much as women, hundreds of years ago.
The earliest records to date of men wearing any type of cosmetic take place in Asia around 3000 BC. Men (and women) would use a mixture of gelatin and egg to stain their nails, like nail polish, to proclaim their status in society. How could we forget King Tut and 18th Century Egyptian culture? It was a fashion statement to use black kohl as liner extended from the lids to as far as the temples. So why, in God's name, is it so wrong in modern day for men to wear makeup?
With the popularity and growth of cinema and movie stars in the twentieth century, makeup was used in a theatrical manner for both men and women. Women became the face of cosmetics because of the impact of the Hollywood industry. With the invention of the first retractable lipstick in 1915, cosmetics started to be seen less as a requirement and more as a consumerist opportunity.
Advertisements being aimed completely towards women created a distinct divide between the sexes. As a result, it became less and less ordinary in every day life for men to use cosmetics. That's why, I believe that the new face of Covergirl being a 17-year-old boy is an incredible step forward for our generation. James Charles, a high school student from Bethlehem, New York, has just recently been announced Covergirl's newest brand ambassador.
Not only this, but he's their first male representative as well. James has not only been breaking boundaries by completely destroying societies overbearing application of gender roles in the most graceful way, but he's infiltrating the media and using his platform to educate those young and old on why it's important to be okay with expressing yourself through makeup, whether you're male or female. He shows us it's not only used for the beautification and enhancement solely for women. Makeup is not for a defined gender, it's for everyone.
