Rebel Rebelling the Norms

Hi Everyone,

Last Sunday was the 2015 MTV Movie Awards show. Even though I usually miss all the major awards shows when they first air, I always come across the best and worst parts of all awards shows/red carpet events on the Internet the next day.  The media frequently focuses on clothing— who is best dressed, who is worst dressed, who wore it better? This time, many people focused on the clothing of Rebel Wilson not because of how it looked on her, but because of the message it sent.

Rebel Wilson, an actress most famous for her role in the movie “Pitch Perfect,” wore angel wings and a bedazzled bra top, clear digs at Victoria’s Secret. She also got attention for her high-waisted leather pants that said “THINK” on the back in lettering that also imitated “PINK” from Victoria’s Secret.

Why did she choose this outfit? Rebel made a very clear point about her wardrobe choice:

“The ‘Bella’ girls [from “Pitch Perfect”] are all different shape and sizes and nationalities,” Wilson said to the press. “I think one of the good messages in the movie is that you’re all beautiful. I think sometimes girls look at Victoria’s Secret models and think that they have to model themselves after that, but I really don’t think that’s the best, even though they are called ‘models,’ they’re not the best people to model yourself after. I like to encourage girls to think, which is why I put that on my butt. It’s really about what’s up here [points to head], and not what’s here [points to backside].”

It’s nice to see someone use her spotlight to make a positive statement about body image. Below are images of Rebel Wilson and her stunning outfit.

Thanks for reading!

Carly

New Angle on "Angel"

Hello Readers,

Lately, it seems like there are movements everywhere for body confidence and positive body image. Last week, Lane Byrant, a plus size women’s clothing company, released its new campaign, “#I’mNoAngel.”

The campaign name/hashtag is a direct dig at Victoria’s Secret, which calls its top supermodels “Angels.” Perhaps one of the biggest goals for many in the modeling world is to become a Victoria’s Secret Angel, as it is often considered reaching the highest point possible of a modeling career. But the idea that becoming an “Angel” is the greatest achievement in modeling may soon be changed… or seems to be already changing.

While some people have criticized the #I’mNoAngel campaign for “skinny shaming” those who are naturally thin and making it seem like being thin is a bad thing, the brand says: "The Lane Bryant #IMNOANGEL initiative celebrates women of all shapes and sizes by redefining society's traditional notion of sexy with a powerful core message: ALL women are sexy."  

The Lane Bryant website also states that “the women who wear Cacique [Intimate line] know that sexy comes in many shapes and sizes. They’re no angels—and they own it. Join the women who are redefining sexy by posting your personal statement of confidence using the hashtag #ImNoAngel. There are already over 16,000 posts with #ImNoAngel, and the campaign just started a few days ago!

At this point, Victoria’s Secret has not responded to the #ImNoAngel campaign, but I’m interested to see if and what they respond.

Below is an image from the Lane Byrant campaign..

Until next time,

-Carly

Law with a Flaw?

Hello readers!

The high fashion world is known for using extremely skinny super models and is often criticized for promoting unhealthy thinness. However, recently France has joined Italy, Spain and Israel in passing legislation that prohibits using models deemed “too skinny.”

The bill that French legislature voted for states that the “activity of model is banned for any person whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is lower than levels proposed by health authorities and decreed by the ministers of health and labor.”

If companies hire a model whose BMI is under 18, the agency could face a hefty fine of around 75,000 euros (around $82,000) and six months in jail. Models are required under this bill to hold a medical certificate that verifies they have a healthy BMI, as determined by the government. This legislation aims to stop the dangerous/unhealthy thin ideal.

While many believe the legislation is a move in the direction of curbing anorexia, others believe that the bill falsely connects thinness and the disorder. Since there are other criteria involved with anorexia, some do not believe that having laws about modeling requirements will change the rates of anorexia.

Another criticism of the bill is that BMI is not a valid way to determine whether someone is “healthy.” A female who is 5’7” and weighs less than 121 pounds would have a BMI of under 18. She would be considered “unhealthy” with this law, while someone of the same height who weighs more (higher BMI) could have an eating disorder such as anorexia but still pass for “healthy” in the modeling world.

Overall, Marisol Touraine, French health minster, believes that “this is an important message to young women who see these models as an aesthetic example.”

Many of the most famous models in America would not even pass for “healthy” with such requirement... but still, I wonder, will America ever have laws like this?

Until next time,

Carly

Because Thin Was "In"

Hi Everyone,

While many people think of anorexia nervosa as a “woman’s disease,” that is not the case at all.  In fact, the rate of eating disorders in college men is between 4 and 10% according to NEDA.

In my searches for articles on links between social media and eating disorders, I find a lot of stories about personal struggles with eating disorders. One story in particular caught my attention this week.

At 20 years old, Thomas (last name not given) was battling anorexia six years after being diagnosed with the disorder.  Thomas said that he felt pressured to look thin in his hometown of Sydney, Australia.  “I believed that I needed to look a certain way to have other people like me and to make friends,” he said in an interview. Thinness seems to be emphasized all over the world in many cultures today.

“I was constantly being bombarded with images of people with the 'ideal body,' photos of people's food and posts about dieting and exercise. I would constantly compare myself to other people online and in Instagram photos,” he also said in the interview, and reported that he further limited his food intake in attempt to resemble the people he often saw on Instagram and other social media sites.

Thomas claims that Instagram is not the cause of his disorder, but that the photos on  Instagram have still furthered his negative thoughts about his body. While Instagram contains millions of photos considered “pro-ana,” Thomas was simply affected by the everyday, common photos of people in their best light.

I always thought mainly just the “thinspiration” pictures were the biggest trigger to negative feelings about one’s body. However, from reading Thomas’s story, I learned that even the photos most people consider harmless, casual photos can still cause other people to compare themselves to those in the photos.  

Thanks for reading!

Carly

More Than a Feeling...Or Not a Feeling At All?

Hello Readers,

Earlier this month, my SRP Advisor Dr. Anné sent me some articles on a recent Facebook controversy, and I found it very interesting, so I want to share it with you.

In 2013, Facebook launched a feature where users can post about how they are feeling in their status updates. Facebook offers hundreds of emotions and accompanying emoticons to choose from. However, recently, one addition to the feelings feature caused a controversy among some users. While the new additions were supposed to offer more options to users so they can express exactly how they feel, some are upset by what they say Facebook is falsely calling an emotion: fat.

Feeling happy, feeling sad—those are clearly emotions. But “feeling fat?” Over 14,000 users have signed a petition to remove “feeling fat” as an option. They say that it makes fun of people who are overweight and people who have eating disorders.  With so many movements towards positive body image, this option on Facebook is thought by some to be counterproductive to such movements, and instead promotes “body shaming.”

The petition was written by Catherine Weingarten with Endangered Bodies (an organization that positivity towards all body shapes and sizes) during National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. This movement encouraged supporters to use #FatIsNotAFeeling to spread awareness for the cause. Weingarten told People Magazine that to her, after her struggle with an eating disorder, that “feeling fat” isn’t just “a light, cute sort of thing for everyone.” She also said in an interview that “Fat is not a feeling. Fat is a natural part of our bodies, no matter their weight. And all bodies deserve to be respected and cared for."

With petition and all efforts to have the “feeling fat” option removed, Facebook has now decided to take it down.  Below is the emoticon that goes with the “feeling fat” option of Facebook.

Thanks for Reading!

-Carly