I have always hated the saying "society sucks" with every fiber of my being — cue perpetual eye-rolling, blood boiling and middle finger flaunting whenever necessary. The use of this mantra is ignorant arrogance at its finest: it attempts to detach blame from the person who says it, as if he or she epitomizes perfection and quintessential moral decency.
Well, sweetie, I'm not giving you the gold medal you think should be bestowed upon you. In fact, you, my friend, need to get it together. Why? You're part of the problem.
"The problem" sounds vague: it's not secret that our world is full of twists, turns, burned edges, barbed wires and heartaches. But the issue I'm examining is the culture of body-shaming that is pervasive in all aspects of our lives, especially on social media.
Serena Williams is hailed as one of the greatest female athletes to walk the Earth, and rightfully so. Winning her sixth Wimbledon championship, Williams has earned and built a strong reputation in the tennis world — wowing and leaving viewers in awe around the globe. Yet, despite her laundry list of accomplishments, people seem to only focus on her "phat" behind, her muscular legs and her physique: all of which are deemed grossly masculine by us.
Yeah, I said it. Us. You may not necessarily degrade her for lacking femininity according to social constructs, but collectively, we're all responsible for allowing the widespread body scrutiny to continue. Instead of focusing on her hardwork and dedication, the media cultivates our interest with her weight loss, weight gain and overall appearance. We act as sheep who actually read into this journalistic garbage and pretend to feel fulfilled.
Sadly, Williams is just a victim among millions who are body-shamed. Ariana Grande looks too young. Kylie Jenner looks too fake. Kendall Jenner is too skinny. Becky, your high school enemy, has a pear-shaped body that is unbecoming and unflattering. Jacob, the class pariah, is a morbidly obese pig. The list goes on and on. From the moment we log onto Instagram or walk down the street, we subconsciously scrutinize others' bodies and compare them to our own.
The implications of body shaming are detrimental, sometimes even fatal. It's more common to hear a woman call herself ugly than to hear her actually declare that she's pretty and worthy. And if she does declare her beauty, she's a condescending snob. Eating disorders, fad diets, plastic surgeries and self-deprecating dialogue among friends (cue group of skinny people saying "I'm so gross!") are commonplace. The media and other businesses, in turn, pray on our vulnerabilities towards body critics by selling miracle weight loss and diet products daily.
This problem won't be resolved overnight, as it's part of human nature to judge, but nevertheless, it's time to be aware. Imagine all of your judgments could be heard. Would you be proud of your harsh thoughts? I didn't think so. Work on yourself, treat others with kindness and look beyond superficiality. Serena is a world-renowned tennis player, a loving sister and an intelligent young woman, not the girl who "looks like a man."
Society doesn't have to suck and should not be hated. This is our home, so it's time to feel comfortable once and for all. Each and every one of us has the power to improve the way we view one another. Our narrative on body image and shaming may be broken, but under construction. And someday, it will be built to serve us well.
