Photo of a Breast Cancer Survivor’s Chest Tattoo Goes Viral After Facebook Tries to Remove It

[Liberal_in_LA]

Photo of a Breast Cancer Survivor’s Chest Tattoo Goes Viral After Facebook Tries to Remove It

Facebook photos go viral everyday — but how many of them go viral because of Facebook's efforts to prevent them from being seen?



According to the official Facebook page of Ontario-based ink design collective Custom Tattoo Design, a photo on their feed of a breast cancer survivor with an all-over chest tattoo has been repeatedly removed by Facebook, ostensibly due to a violation of its infamously opaque terms of service concerning nudity.

To protest Facebook's actions, Custom Tattoo Design has been reposting the photo every time it's removed, and says it will continue to do so in honor of the woman's bravery and strength.

To help them in their cause, the company has asked its thousands of followers to like and share the photo " to show your support for this and many other women who have lost so much."

At the time of writing, the post has over 140,000 likes, some 115,000 shares, and around 17,000 comments, most of which express indignation at Facebook's heartless disrespect toward cancer victims.

It seems that the backlash has ultimately persuaded Facebook to let the photo be, as it appears to have been left up unmolested for the past several days.

http://gawker.com/5985361/photo-of-a-breast-cancer-survivors-chest-tattoo-goes-viral-after-facebook-tries-to-remove-it

[Arugula Latte]

1. FB also bans photos of breastfeeding and so on but allows photos promoting violence against women.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2013/feb/19/facebook-images-rape-domestic-violence

[BlancheSplanchnik]

18. I went to the link, read the article and now I think I may go nuclear.

I. Am. Beyond. Angry.


I also feel like I might throw up.



have to run now.....get to a meeting.

[REP]

2. I'm not sure how I feel about this ...

It feels like they're doing some self-promotion with some pink-washing, though it does seem to be a very nicely-done tattoo (and it does take a lot of courage to have that much inking done, in addition to the obvious).

[SQUEE]

3. I am less interested in the shops motivation

Than in the womans strength and in the move to realign traditional ideas of beauty.
The work is very vivid, and well done , BUT her strength is completely breathtaking, imagine how hard it would be to show yourself this way in our mammary obsessed culture.

[eShirl]

4. wow, beautiful

[ChisolmTrailDem]

5. I don't have a single tat (and prolly never will) but this one is awesome! eom

[lpbk2713]

6. Really artistic

And a bold move on the part of the Big C Survivor.





Just don't let her in Olive Garden.

[Skittles]

7. what is remotely offensive about that picture?

I do not understand

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. she's nekkid

[redqueen]

10. There are no crowd-pleasingly displayed boobs there.

It is offensive to defy the requirements of nekkid boob pics by not showing any actual boobs there! How dare she?!?!?!?!



In truth I have no idea. There have been cancer support groups whose similar pictures removed or their pages even shut down. It's total madness.

[Adsos Letter]

19. Nothing.

Not one single thing.

On the other hand...99% of the Republican/right-wing crap that gets posted to fb is very offensive, but gets a pass.

We're losing our collective mind...

[Drum]

8. amazing design! n/t

[justiceischeap]

11. Does FB continuously remove photos of bare chested men?

I have to wonder at their policy if they aren't.

[AtheistCrusader]

14. If enough people click 'alert' on it, it will.

Such 'wars' happen on facespace all the time.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

12. Ontario? Close enough....

[AtheistCrusader]

13. Facebook doesn't 'remove it'.

Too many people hit 'alert' on something, and it gets nuked. FB employees work in terms of algorithms. Not end user content. They couldn't possibly manage it otherwise.

Also, that image, and the 'bodies of subversion' tattoo series has more to credit for 'going viral' than just Facebook, as it has been carried on multiple major news sites as well. Facebook is just one vehicle for these things to get around.

(Hell, the 'subversion' copyright is right there in the damn image, buy the book)

[intheflow]

15. Absolutely the most beautiful tattoo I have ever seen.

It represents that woman's outter and inner beauty.

[Jean Genie]

16. Gorgeous tattoo

It's a beautiful tattoo - a work of art. Far more elegant than the flabby, bare-chested, men-with-boobies look that pervades my neighborhood every lawn-mowing Saturday in the spring and summer!

[JNelson6563]

23. haha! Well said!

Welcome to DU!

Julie

[Sissyk]

17. Why did Facebook want that down??

It's beautiful. I think that Lady is very courageous and the picture should be seen as a work of art.

Plus, this is now getting the Creator that much more publicity!

[Lars39]

20. Pretty

Risk of lymphedema, though, and I'm not sure I'd want to cover up visual clues of a return.
The first post-mastectomy chest tattoo I'd ever seen was of a gorgeous tree of life.

[riderinthestorm]

21. Beautifully stunning. Both the tattoo and the woman's courage. K&R nt

[Orrex]

22. That's amazing!

To hell with Facebook--that tat is incredible!

Good for her!