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Let’s face it, periods are normal, even though Instagram might not view it as such. Poetess and author, Rupi Kaur posted a picture of a fully clothed woman on her bed with period stains on her clothes and sheets were deleted twice citing that the picture went against community guidelines.
According to Instagram’s guidelines, it prohibits sexual acts, nudity and violence – none of which were shown in Kaur’s photo. In order for the photo to be deleted, users had to flag it as inappropriate and then it is reviewed by the Instagram team. Interestingly, bloody images of accidents does not violate community guidelines, however, a photo of period blood does.
After it was deleted for a second time, Kaur put the photo up on Facebook, where it ended up going viral. According to Kaur’s Facebook page, this photo is one of many on her website that showcase the various situations that women face when they are menstruating. Kaur’s aim is to take periods and make what society has made taboo “normal” again.
After Kaur’s Facebook post went viral, Instagram took notice and has sent an apology to Kaur along with putting her photo back up on the site. They claimed that Kaur’s photo was “accidentally removed” by a member of their team. Kaur shared the apology e-mail on her site and thanked her supporters.
What do you think of this whole situation? Sound off in the comment section below.
