Letters to the Editor: Pamela Anderson's makeup-free message: Love and liberate yourself

To the editor: Not wearing makeup is freedom, self-love and self-validation. ("Pamela Anderson went to Paris Fashion Week without makeup. I’m in my 40s and nervous about following her example," Opinion, Oct. 7)

I recall staring adoringly at my newborn as a new mom and realizing that "perfect beauty" has all the physical dimensions of a baby's face. And, its corollary: Makeup is the means to that end.

I made the mistake of sharing this "aha!" with my therapy group (all males but me at the time). To a man they ridiculed my discovery and insisted that beauty was not physical.

My response: "Oh, yes! I see your wives."

This wasn't a slam on their wives. We all were duped by the economic exploitation of our desire to belong.

But we've come a long way, baby. We are not babies anymore.

Barbara Sophia Eurich-Rascoe, Pasadena

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To the editor: Kudos to Pamela Anderson and op-ed article writer Hoda Mallone.

At 66 years old, I’m no trend-setter and certainly not a celebrity. Following my mother's example, my makeup-free face has been around my entire life.

I wasn't making a statement; I just never wanted the person that I woke up to in the mirror to look very different than the person I saw before going to bed at night.

Sarah Fink Aylard, Santa Barbara

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To the editor: Thank you, Pamela Anderson, for appearing makeup-free in public with grace and dignity.

As a breast cancer patient without hair, I have been given the courage to walk without shame and be myself on my journey to wellness.

Jeanette Fein, Rancho Mirage

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.