If you’re on social media, it’s more than likely your channels have been swamped with photos of people using Snapchat ’s new gender-changing filters.
The filters give users either typically male features such as a square jawline and facial hair, or typically female features, such as long hair and a slimmer face.
While most Snapchat users likely see the filters as harmless fun, several members of the trans community have expressed concerns.
Speaking to AJ+, Ash Doss Hunter, a queer advocate, explained: “We see every day at alarming rates that trans women of colour in particular are being attacked for living their truth.
“Making transness look like it is something that someone can take on and off, for someone like me, it’s seen as insensitive.”
Several people have also taken to Twitter to voice concerns about the filter.
One user wrote: “All these ‘jokes’ with those ‘girl/boy’ snapchat filters i’ve been seeing are really s***ty and transphobic!!! y’all think it’s so cute to play with gender roles rn meanwhile trans people are literally murdered for existing!!!!”
Another added: “‘I'm glad a lot of trans people are having fun with that snapchat filter, but it makes me uncomfortable.
“I don't want to be shown what I'd look like 'as a woman' because, to me, it's telling me that I'm not a woman until I pass.”
While Snapchat declined Mirror Online's request for comment, it provided us with background on the new filters.
It explained: "We understand that identity is deeply personal. As we continue to explore the possibilities of this technology, our Lens design team is working closely with the company’s employee resource groups, customer operations, policy, and T&S teams to ensure that on the whole these Lenses are diverse and inclusive by providing a wide range of transformative effects."
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