Yes, you are seeing correctly, that is in fact the bare bum of America's former-sweetheart, Justin Bieber. Like most people, your first reaction to the racy photo is probably one of surprise. Where is the little 13-year-old Justin melting my heart with "Baby," enticing me with his romantic music videos and swoopy hair? Or, you might be one of Justin's 35.9 million followers, showering him with praise and compliments on his tight little butt. Either way, I'm not judging you. He put the picture out there for the world to see, and I applaud him for utilizing his freedom of speech on the internet.
I was, however, a little unsettled by all the praise Justin received for the photo. Sure, he wasn't showing his manhood to the world or posing seductively; the photo is supposed to be silly and joking. Many memes are now floating around the internet, playfully making JB the butt (hehe) of many jokes.
The internet gently mocks and praises Justin for giving everyone that chance to sneak a peak at his body, and girls beg him to "turn around" in comments. But, imagine if a female of the same celebrity status posted a similar photo. How would the Instagram world react?
Let's think back to some recent internet photo debacles that crazed the internet. Kim Kardashian's cover photos for Paper Magazine shocked many readers, calling her out for showing some of her breast and all of her butt, with some poses and well-crafted photographs. Or let's even go all the way back to Vanessa Hudgens' leaked nude photos in 2007; she nearly lost her contract with Walt Disney for High School Musical 3 according to rumors. These women and many more have received comments full of hatred and scrutiny for baring their bodies to the world. In contrast to Hudgen's unintentionally leaked photos, Kardashian put her body out to the public by choice in professionally taken magazine photos, seeking to "break the internet," which she most certainly did. Many applauded Kardashian for taking an artful approach to showing her body, while many judged and degraded her. What kind of role model was she being for her young children? Would these photos come back to haunt her? The judgmental questions are endless.
I could go on and on...and on and on, talking about the disparities between male and female representation and media judgment on the internet. But, we've all heard it before. The big point I want to make here is, it doesn't matter what celebrities, or anyone for that matter, puts out on the internet. There are many worse photos, videos, and words out there in the interwebs. If JB wants to show the world his booty? Good on him, I'm glad he's got the confidence. "Butt" (hehe again) the big kicker is we must give that same freedom and respect to women. The human body is beautiful in all its forms. Many like to keep it to themselves and others have no problem sharing it with the world. Either way, it's not your body, so it's not your place to judge. If you don't like it, go ahead and hit that unfollow button. There are many more detrimental sights in the world than Kim Kardshian's side boob or Justin Bieber's butt. Let's try to solve world hunger, and then maybe we can talk some more about internet nudity.
