Dear Victoria,
I know your secret. I know your business thrives off my insecurities. I know that you want me to hate myself because the less I think of myself the more money you make. I know your tricks, your methods of manipulation and they don’t fool me anymore. I’m assaulted by images of beautiful, skeletal “angels” every single day. I’m on my couch watching a movie when suddenly there’s a flawless woman of the screen telling me I’m not good enough. I’m Christmas shopping when *BAM* a 20-foot tall emaciated girl is on the wall shouting, “You’re fat!” And after they crush my sense of self-worth and self-love they whisper, “But don’t worry, come in here and buy what we are selling and you’ll be as happy, loved, confident, and beautiful as we are!”
Well guess what Victoria? I’M NOT BUYING IT. I’m not buying your photoshop, filters, eating disorders, and superficial happiness.
Having pushed up boobs, a concaved stomach, a thigh gap, and no cellulite or stretch marks does not make you an Angel. Spending hundreds of dollars on lingerie doesn’t make you Irresistible. I refuse to watch your “fashion” show because I refuse to enable and support a company that runs off the self-hatred and belittling of women. You don’t empower us. You don’t encourage us. You don’t care if your ads and campaigns are causing us to hate what we see in the mirror as long as it’s making you money.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand that some women are naturally thin. And there is NOTHING wrong with them. I am NOT bashing them. I am bashing YOU. I am bashing you for photoshopping and editing them. I am bashing you for giving us these falsified, manmade images and telling us that that is the “Perfect Body.” I am bashing you for only representing one body type, one that the MAJORITY of women do not have and that many have died trying to obtain. I am bashing you for trying to define the words: Very Sexy, Fantasy, Angel, Gorgeous, Fit, Bold, and Beautiful. You do not have claim to these words. You don’t get to decide who is beautiful and who is not.
So give it up Victoria, your secret is out.
Much love,
An empowered woman