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Pretty privilege: A conversation about colorism, femininity, and what it means to be beautiful

caption: Portraits of Jana Le (left), Taniya Guster and Nyla Moxley in a "pretty privilege" collage.
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Portraits of Jana Le (left), Taniya Guster and Nyla Moxley in a "pretty privilege" collage.
Collage by Jana Le

People who are conventionally attractive are often treated differently — treated better — than people who aren't. That's "pretty privilege."

And when pretty privilege is based on Eurocentric beauty standards, it can further marginalize people of color, people with large bodies, queer people, and disabled people.

In this episode of the RadioActive podcast, Nyla Moxley, Jana Le, and Taniya Guster discuss pretty privilege, how it affects them and how it relates to colorism and femininity.

[RadioActive Youth Media is KUOW's radio journalism and audio storytelling program for young people. This story was entirely youth-produced, from the writing to the audio editing.]

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Pretty Privilege Podcast Transcript

A written transcript of the full podcast in PDF format

This podcast was produced in a RadioActive Youth Media introductory workshop for high school-age youth. Production assistance by Hayden Andersen. Edited by Troy Landrum Jr.

Find RadioActive on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Facebook, and on the RadioActive podcast.

Support for KUOW's RadioActive comes from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Discovery Center and BECU.

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