On March 28th, actor Wentworth Miller posted on his Facebook an empowering message regarding body image and body shaming. A post on a popular page, The LAD Bible, showed a comparison of two photos of Miller. One, from his time staring on the popular television show, "Prison Break" and one of him walking and flashing a rare smile. The caption? "When you break out of prison and find out about McDonald's monopoly ..." This post was "liked" over 101k times, had 12,516 "shares" and endless comments when Miller posted this screenshot on his personal page. This post has since been taken down but can been seen below or on Millers page.
Wentworth Miller went to his Facebook to address this meme and all of the hurtful attention given to this shameful share with an intimate response as his ongoing battle with depression.
The rest of his response can be found on his personal Facebook page or you could always Google it to find it on hundreds of popular websites or magazines. The LAD Bible has since apologized for not realizing the impact that they had by posting a rude meme. The problem is that most of us do not think before we post or like these memes that tear others down. Another ironic outcome of this post? The articles written about Wentworth commending his honesty are being written by companies that thrive on body shaming. Sure, they wrote a post encouraging Miller on his bravery for opening up about mental illness, however, the next post will most likely contradict the piece on Miller. The front page will probably have an article about getting into the best shape for bikini season or how certain women or men shouldn't wear certain styles because of their shape. It's society taking one step forward and two steps back.
Why do popular pages or anyone in that matter feel like they are entitled comment on appearances, especially when there is a drastic change. I have heard almost every excuse from these pages and websites as to why they can comment on others lives, especially celebrities. The one that sticks out the most to me is that this post is okay because celebrities subject themselves to this. This is what they get. However, these pages need to understand the difference between having an opinion and voicing that, and body shaming. The definition of body shaming is the practice of making critical, potentially humiliating comments about a person's body size or weight.
Bottom line — you never know what a person is going through, so why add extra, unnecessary pain. Your comments on someones appearance or body weight could potentially push someone over the edge or make the struggle against depression or an eating disorder even worse than before. Wenworth Miller is someone I have always enjoyed watching on T.V. He not only lights up the screen with his dry, sarcastic humor in D.C's "Legends of Tomorrow" (a new show on The CW), but he makes a large impact on lives through his openness of his own personal struggles. I applaud Miller on opening up and using his large following and platform to educate others on mental illnesses, like many more should do.
It is never okay to weigh in on other peoples weight, because we have no idea what the other person is going through. It is also important to remember the golden rule we all learned in Kindergarten- treat others the way you want to be treated. You wouldn't want strangers to comment on your appearance or tell you you've gained weight or dyed your hair the wrong color, so why do you feel the obligation to comment on other people? Mental illnesses are invisible to the eye, which is why they are so harmful. Think before you shame or comment on another because you never know what demons someone is trying to keep out.
