Many of you know Amy Schumer as a hilarious comedian, or for her role in the movie "Trainwreck." To some, her sense of humor is considered racist and sexist, but to many it's simply considered hilarious. Amy Schumer uses her sense of humor to bring about current issues in today's society. I think it can definitely be said that Amy Schumer is a feminist. Through her stand-up, she brings about issues of sexist stereotyping, gender inequality, the sexualization of females, and much more. She is basically exactly what we need in a feminist today.
One of the topics she covers in her stand up is body image. Amy Schumer is not a toothpick-skinny supermodel. The best thing about this is that she recognizes that, and is proud of her body. The fact that people look at Amy Schumer and consider her to be "fat" or "overweight" is absurd. The woman is a size 6 in pants! In one show Amy said, "I'm so glad this show is in New York. I just found out I am too disgusting for L.A. In L.A. my arms register like legs ... They're like, 'What is that octopus walking around?'" It's clear that she's being sarcastic, but it brings up a serious issue of what young girls think that they should look like. Girls today believe that they need to have a flat stomach, a thigh gap, and not an inch of fat on their body. This is unrealistic and not OK. Not all of us were born to have bodies like that, and there's nothing wrong with that.
In Amy Schumer's "Saturday Night Live" monologue, she said, "We have to be a role model for these little girls, because who do they have? All they literally have is the Kardashians." This is why Amy Schumer is one of the best things to happen to feminism and comedy in a long time. She brings up these issues that are very serious, but brings them up in a way that make us laugh, while also realizing that a change needs to be made.
So, this is where my thank you to Amy really comes in. Amy Schumer has decided to model practically nude in the 2016 Pirelli Calendar. In years past, this Italian brand tire company photographed typically twig-skinny models in tropical and exotic locations. The company decided to move away from that standard this year, and has announced that they will photograph 13 women of "outstanding professional, social, cultural, sporting, and artistic accomplishment." This is huge.
Among these 13 women, one of course is Amy Schumer, along with Serena Williams, Patti Smith, and more. Pirelli also decided to stop with all the excessive photo editing and extravagant scenery, taking very simple pictures in a normal photography studio. Below is Schumer's photograph for the calendar.
Schumer posted this photo on her Instagram on Nov. 30, with the caption: "Beautiful, gross, strong, thin, fat, pretty, ugly, sexy, disgusting, flawless, woman." This post is pure perfection. It's time to cut the crap with posting pictures where we all look skinny with makeup caked on our face. Amy Schumer is a badass b*tch, if you ask me. It's time to remind the world what natural beauty looks like, and she is doing just that.
So, thank you, Amy Schumer. Thank you for reminding the world what the average woman looks like. Thank you for reminding us that there's a difference between being healthy and fit versus skinny. Thank you for reminding us all to love our body and be proud of it. Thank you, Amy Schumer, for being as brave as you are, and for inspiring change. And last but not least, thank you for all the laughs and for just being you.
Cheers to that!