If we're being honest with ourselves, pretty privilege does exist in some capacity, but if you don't believe it... Well, these stories might change your mind. Recently, BuzzFeed Community members shared the wildest instances of "pretty privilege" they've witnessed or experienced, and some of these are almost unbelievable:
1. "I was sort of a low-key person and never thought I was an attractive man — just average. After I grew a beard, though, the ladies at work would stop me and ask for my advice on personal problems. One lady complimented my eyes, and another said I had a 'well-modulated' voice. Another commented on my cologne. Before the beard, I had the same eyes, the same voice, and was using the same cologne I always had been. The beard did something, but I don't know what?"
2. "I don't know if this is pretty privilege, but people will just give things to me. Like, one time, I was in a class with some of my friends, and a guy I barely knew pulled out his wallet, so I jokingly asked him for money. Without missing a beat, he handed me some cash. This happens all the time; people will always go out of their way to do things for me. I've seen people treat my friends terribly, but the second I walk up to them, their demeanor changes. It's WILD."
—Anonymous
3. "I used to work in PR, and before that, the news media. You wouldn't believe the number of people I saw who just got handed prominent on-air roles — despite having ZERO journalism or PR experience — for the SOLE reason that they looked good on camera."
—Anonymous
4. "I hadn't realized this until I went on different dates with different men, but the conversation always turns to him asking, 'Don't you find that annoying?' Me: 'What?' Him: 'That everywhere you go, the guys are all checking you out?' The first time I heard that, I thought the guy was just being insecure, but it's something that's been said to me multiple times. I always have to tell guys that that's something I gave up caring about a long time ago. Also, if I think a guy is handsome, I'll go up and say so. As long as they don't have a girlfriend, I've never been rejected. I always scout out the ring situation first."
5. "I've never had to change a flat tire. I just get out of the car, look helplessly at it, and within 30 seconds a man stops and offers to change the tire for me. But then, I live in a cowboy county, where men are dragon slayers and are always looking for another dragon to conquer. And fixing flats for women is truly one of the last dragons left!"
6. "When I was a kid, we went to visit my grandma in a small farming town in Montana. It's the kind of area that shares maybe three cops for the whole county. We got pulled over because my mom was speeding, but she smiled her way out of a ticket. My brother and I, of course, ratted our mom out to Grandma, and my grandma was pissed! Not because my mom was driving fast enough for Montana cops to give a crap, but because that same cop had given my grandma a speeding ticket earlier that week."
7. "I hated my red hair and freckles as a kid because I got teased a lot. I learned as a young adult that many people fetishize redheads when I started getting free stuff and extra attention for no apparent reason. I was wild, going from wanting to hide my strawberry-blonde locks to seeing them as an advantage. The red has faded as I've aged, though, which is a bummer!"
8. "My best friend is a hot mess; she's hot, and she's a mess. She doesn't know how to do many adult life stuff because she has this 'damsel in distress' effect on people who scramble to do stuff for her if she mentions not knowing how to do it. She's chaotic, and therefore always late for everything. If I showed up late for work as often as she does, I'd be fired in no time. When she's late, people think she's all whimsical and cute, and that something must've surely happened to that 'poor, poor thing' for her to be late yet again."
9. "When I sit at the bar alone, I almost always get handed a shot or drinks paid for by men at the bar."
10. "My friend Gina is movie-star beautiful. I coined the term 'free food' as a rating of 10 for her, since she was always comped for her meals. How often it happened was wild. She also wasn't charged for the extras that came with her expensive range."
—Linda, 78, female
11. "There were two very pretty women in my friend group from my 20s and 30s. Meanwhile, I'm overweight and dress for comfort. We would frequently go to concerts. The others would always be invited backstage, while I was specifically excluded. I would go to bars nearby to wait for them, where I would not be served, because who wants an ugly woman in the bar scaring away the customers? But as soon as my friends showed up, the bartenders would become ever so attentive and friendly. I found it hysterical."
—PJ, 50, Georgia
12. "I have to admit that my looks opened many doors for me. In school, I was always friends with the popular and wealthy kids. I never considered myself popular, but others did."
—Jimi, 39, male, North Carolina
13. "Since I was 19, I realized I had pretty privilege. My face and smile were gorgeous, and to add to it, I always had my cleavage showing. I once said I didn't have enough for the down payment on my new car (I had $1,000 in my purse), and the dealership manager waived it. I got every job I interviewed for, and I never have to open doors or lift luggage over my head on a flight. I once complained about turbulence during a flight and was given free champagne. It still happens even though I'm 57. I felt like I deserved it, because throughout school, I was always called the 'fat Black girl.' After I graduated, everything changed, so I went with it. It helps that I dress in designer clothes and carry designer purses. It's been great! The universe said I suffered enough when I was younger."
14. "My coworker was pretty and always dressed up. One of our jobs was to fill the van's gas tank. Each time it was her turn, any male around the gas station would tell her she shouldn't be doing that, and would fill the tank for her."
—Anonymous
15. "Four of us went for drinks late after work. I was with Rhonda, a drop-dead-tall, great-looking blonde woman. She was speeding down Dearborn and passed a police car, and we got pulled over. We started hiding our drinks under the seats and thought we were all gonna get arrested, but as soon as that cop saw her and how she started smiling and talking, he just said, 'Have a great night, and slow down!'"
—Keith, 73, male, Illinois
16. "When I was a graduate student, one of the ladies who worked in our department was so SWOONINGLY lovely that men would line up at her desk for no reason except to stare. She had to get a special nameplate made for her desk, emphasizing that she was a Mrs. My wife experienced something like this. She was a pharmacy technician, and male customers would line up at her window just to say things like, 'Your smile lights up the day' (which it did!). She once introduced me to one of her regular male customers. Out of earshot, he told me, 'You're a lucky man.' I replied, 'I'm well-aware of it.'"
—Anonymous, 60+, male, Delaware
17. "From 19 to 27, I was what one would call a 'pretty surfer boy.' Every employer told me I was hired based on my looks. Additionally, I would get upgraded to first class simply by being nice to the flight attendants, and I never paid for drinks while flying, either. I'm 67 now, and though I'm in my senior years, I dress extremely well and still get attention and freebies here and there. I do believe it was my looks that opened the door, but it was how I treated everyone that paid off."
18. "When I was young and pretty, every time I dropped something, a nearby man would rush to pick it up for me. Doors were always held open; men, in particular, were always helpful. I didn't really notice it until it stopped. I've lost, gained, and lost weight, and have personally seen the obvious shift, as my level of attractiveness changed back and forth."
—Anonymous
19. "So, I never thought I was 'pretty' per se, but until a friend pointed it out, I did not realize that never having to tap a barkeep in a busy bar or call a server over in a busy restaurant was abnormal. I just thought that everyone had staff walk up to see what I needed. I also barely ever open the door. Ninety percent of the time, a dude will get it for me."
—Anonymous
20. "This was years ago, but I went to do a job interview at the college bookstore to be a cashier. The guy told me about the job, but didn't ask me anything about myself or my qualifications. I then asked if he had any questions for me, and he said, 'No, you are hired.' I said, 'Don't you want to ask me anything?' He said, 'No, come in on Monday.' Well, that wasn't the first time. Any time I applied for a job at that college, I got it immediately. At that time in my life, I looked a little like Brooke Shields. She still looks like Brooke Shields, but I don't."
—Anonymous
21. Lastly: "There was this gym that my wife and I wanted to join. We stopped by on a Sunday to check it out. My wife waited in the car while I went to see if we could get in. My wife is very beautiful and modest. I knocked on the gym's glass door and was turned away by the guys, who told me to come back on Monday. I went back to my car and told my wife, 'Yeah, let's take a look,' knowing that once they saw my wife, they would let us in. Sure enough, three guys rushed to the door to let us in. When we left, my wife commented, 'Everyone was so nice!' This happens to us all the time."
What's the wildest example of "pretty privilege" you've witnessed or experienced? Let us know in the comments, or you can anonymously submit your story using the form below.
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
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