Recently, I have seen some negative media on body the positive movement as well as remarks on who does and doesn't have a right to be body positive. Being the opinionated human that I am, I felt the need to let out some steam, and the best way I knew to do that was to write an article.
So here I am, minding my own business, scrolling though Facebook one day, when I see this:
Naturally, I was furious. What is the difference? I know that I'm going to raise hell with this article, but honestly, bring it on. Does one person's disability have the right to rob another person from their right to be confident and happy in their own skin? Absolutely not. In my opinion, all of these women are beautiful.
I think there is some misunderstanding when the term "body positive" is used. So let's get to the basics. The body positive movement is:
the feminist movement that encourages women and men to adopt more forgiving and affirming attitudes towards their bodies, with the goal of improving overall health and well-being.
In other words, the term "body positive" means loving your body regardless of size, shape, color, whatever, with an overall goal to become a healthier and happier you. Now, please, tell me, how the woman in purple doesn't have a right to be happy and confident? Sure, she's curvy, but in my opinion she looks damn good, because She is happy. So what else matters?
So why was I so angered by this post? Obviously it's personal. My family isn't the skinniest group of people. We all have a little more to love. And me? I weigh 220lbs, but I don't "look" obese, so in the scheme of things, I don't get thrown in the "fat category." But these are the facts; I am obese, and you know what? I look damn good.
Let's take a look at another graphic shall we?
Wait, what?
Here's some shocking truth tea, people can weigh the same amount and look different. People hold weight differently. I don't look like I weigh 220. I don't look obese. But the facts? The facts say otherwise. I'm repeating this. but it's because we all need to understand how stupid it is to judge someone on their appearance. We are judging people on their appearance. We look at someone and have decided exactly who they are without ever speaking to them.
So the next time you're walking down the street and think to yourself, "Wow that girl/guy is fat," remind yourself that you have no idea what their story is. You have no idea what they have gone through to be where they are now. And trust me, they sure as hell don't need you reminding them of their size. Not one of us has the right to tell someone they can't love themselves or be comfortable in their own skin.
Here's the real truth: none of us are perfect. So before we point fingers at someone else, look in the mirror, we all have something we could change. We all need to love a little bit more. We all need to be a little bit more understanding. We need to start supporting one another, because I can promise you, telling someone that they're fat does a lot more damage than good.