Guy Shares Emotional Reaction To Putting On Plaster In His Skin Tone For First Time

Dominique Apollon/Twitter

A man has expressed his delight after finally finding a band aid – or plaster to us Brits – that matches with his skin tone.

Dominique Apollon, from Oakland, California, admitted he was ‘holding back tears’ as he observed the Tru-Colour bandage blending easily with his skin tone.

This may seem like such a simple, everyday item to some people, but for Dominique, this plaster gave him a strong sense of ‘belonging’.

More often than not, plasters come in a shade intended to match Caucasian skin, described as ‘nude’ or ‘flesh coloured’ without much thought to those from other races for whom this isn’t accurate.

Taking to Twitter, a joyful Dominique spoke with emotion about the plaster:

It’s taken me 45 trips around the sun, but for the first time in my life I know what it feels like to have a ‘band-aid’ in my own skin tone. You can barely even spot it in the first image. For real I’m holding back tears.

Not like I didn’t know these strips existed. But I definitely didn’t expect the complex emotions that would swirl as I watched it just … blend in. A seemingly trivial exercise I’ve repeated 1000x on my body with ‘regular’ ones since childhood. Self-administered #antiblackness

Dominique added:

This felt like belonging. Like feeling valued. Sadness for my younger self and millions of kids of color, esp black kids. Like a reminder of countless spaces where my skin is still not welcomed. Feared. Hated. Like, ‘Why am I really thinking all this ’bout an effing band-aid?’

Dominique explained he didn’t know too much about the manufacturer who produced these Tru-Colour bandages, but expressed profound appreciation towards them for making him feel so valued.

Dominique’s tweet struck a chord with many of his followers, with many sharing their own stories of how plasters have affected them.

Star Wars actor John Boyega empathized:

Yep! On film sets where we get cuts alot, make up artists have to paint it brown to get you picture ready.

Another commenter tweeted:

This was one of the first things that made me aware of ‘race’ when I was a kid. I remember asking my mom about the bandaid color…Also the ‘flesh’ crayon.

Dominique’s tweet quickly went viral, sparking important conversations about how such simple changes can have such a powerful effect towards making everybody feel included.

Dominique, who holds a PhD in political science from Stanford University, was pleased with the way his personal experience had opened up wider discussions, tweeting:

And I’m glad this thread has sparked some love, introspection, empathy, and conscious actions in others. White supremacy is a beast, and defeating it will take all of the above elements and more, applied at all levels of our societies. But the results will be so, so beautiful.

Hopefully other manufacturers will see how happy this plaster has made Dominique, and follow suit.

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Julia Banim

Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.