I recently read an article which seemed to be from the point of view of a very fed up woman. She then proceeded to discuss how plus size women get all of the pity, while the skinny girls are bashed for being "too skinny".
"You bigger girls are no better than the skinnier girls bullying people's weight online... women are the first one's saying us thin girls aren't real women, but you're also the ones wishing to wear the crop tops and short shorts I wear. Is it that you secretly wish you could look like me or is it that you truly hate the body I possess?"
Now, for some of us “bigger girls”, that was spot on. Doesn’t that scare you? Do you want to change that?
My best friend is a sweet, hilarious, kind, wise, intelligent, helpful, creative person who loves food. Oh, and she’s also a size zero, whereas I’ve been a plus size since fifth grade. In truth, up until about three years ago, while I truly loved and cherished her, I hated my own body because it could never be like hers. I never felt comfortable doing things that seemed like things “normal girls” did; like laying on the floor, wearing tank tops, or even eating more than the people I would hang out with. I felt paranoid that everyone, including my best friend, was disgusted by something that I couldn’t control about myself. So I covered myself up with coats, scarves, billowy fashion, long curly hair, and excuses. But even as I was stuck in my hole of self-hate and disgust, the people around me would shine some light in there.
My friends are some of the most encouraging people I know. They may not be plus size or even understand what that feels like, but that doesn’t mean I’m to be pitied. Heck, even they get crap for the way they look, even if it’s in a joking manner. I can name a time when my friend stood up for me when someone was hating on my size, but I can also remember times when I would do the same for her. And sometimes we would bring up how interesting and almost ironic it was that the smallest and biggest person in our class were the best of friends. And you know what? We’d proceed to laugh because neither of us truly cared about that. We’re a diverse pair, and that’s alright. If we looked exactly the same, it’d be harder to recognize and adore the differences between us.
So yes, I am a plus size woman, but I’m writing for ALL women of ALL sizes. I’m not upset about this girl who wrote about her frustration with “skinny girl discrimination” because, to be honest, there is. Plus size women aren’t represented in the media enough or at all, but pushing the opposite sized women down to raise attention to the plus sized ones is not the way to go.
To quote a very wise song, “Why Can’t We Be Friends?”
