Wahey! A practically naked girl! You can all breathe a sigh of relief that I am no longer talking about science. Soz about that.
This girl (for those of you who don't know) is none other than glamour model Kate Upton. And, I know what you're thinking: “Huge thighs, NO waist, big fat floppy boobs, terrible body definition...”
NO. YOU'RE NOT. BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT AN IDIOT.
But that IS what was posted about her on pro-ana site Skinny Gossip.
Yeah, yeah, not everyone is Kate Upton's biggest fan and it would be massively hypocritical of me to not admit that I did laugh at her banned videos. Most recently this one by Terry Richardson:
But all tongue-in-cheek slutiness aside, I'm pretty sure my intolerance for pro-anorexia sites outweighs my distaste in glamour modelling. Especially this pro-ana post in question, which begins with the following:
"Did you know that humans are 80% genetically identical to cows? Well, allow me to prove it to you…
Guess who?! Yes, it’s the lovely Kate Upton, confidently lumbering up a runway like there’s a buffet at the end of it."
The post goes on to say:
"She looks like a squishy brick. Is this what American women are 'striving' for now? The lazy, lardy look? Have we really gotten so fat in this country that Kate is the best we can aim for? Sorry, but: eww! Fashion is supposed to be aspirational—and the kind of people who aspire to look like this shop for clothes at Wal-Mart. She looks like she would work in the back of a motorcycle shop in Nashville and give (bad) blow jobs for $25."
So, yeah, she's not a great role model. Sure. And perhaps not the healthiest. But come on, she's hot, and there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with her figure. NOTHING.
I do agree with Victoria's Secret (and unfortunately the Skinny Gossip site) when they said:
“We would never use her… she’s like a Page 3 girl… she’s like a footballer’s wife, with the too-blond hair and that kind of face that anyone with enough money can go out and buy.”
She's not classy enough for them, and yeah, she's pretty cakey. I don't think she should set her dreams on any high-fashion modelling. Also, sure, maybe she could do with losing a couple of pounds- but who couldn't?! In that sense, she represents 'normal'.
This is all part of a bigger thing for me. I considered doing a whole post on pro-ana sites after getting myself in a research black hole for ages when I started looking into society's freedom of speech on the internet. I ruled it out as a topic as it all got too much and I couldn't condense it down... The whole thing just didn't seem all that worth it in the end, when I came out the other side.
Skinny Gossip's USP actually used to be daily tips for starving oneself. I remember coming across it when I was looking at these sites. They've taken the tips down now though, but I managed to find some examples that were featured in a Gothamist post:
"Compete!! Compare your body to your friends’ and coworkers’ bodies. Are you the thinnest? If not, why not?"
"Compete with yourself; test your willpower by making a delicious meal for your boyfriend. Serve it to him and everything—see if you can eat none of it."
"When eating with others, cut your food up into really tiny pieces and move it around the plate. It makes it look like you ate a lot more than you really did."
"Food JUST SITS THERE. Whenever you feel like reaching for some food, take another look at it and you’ll come to realize that it just sits there. All you have to do is NOT reach for it and you’re safe.
"Live by the scale and the measuring tape."
Skinny Gossip responded to the Kate Upton post with the following:
"As a thin person, I was annoyed by our double-standards around weight. For example, people think nothing of telling a thin woman—to their face, in front of an entire group of people—how skinny they are and even to suggest what they should eat."
I kind of get that.
Don't get me wrong, I thought the public bullying of Kate Upton in the post was abhorrent. But I do think that it seems acceptable these days for people to criticise the weight of a small person, but not that of a larger person. I guess I touched on this in my previous Fatkini post, so I won't go into all that agiain.
I would also like to mention that Skinny Gossip has claimed NOT to be a pro-anorexia site, so when I have referred to it as such, it was probably me being hyperbolic. But I will let you judge that for yourselves.
I guess I started getting touchy about this subject when I saw people laying into Barbara Palvin for Victoria's Secret on Facebook. What is no secret is that I. LOVE. HER. And 'public' opinion was just ridiculous! On one photo- too fat, and another one- too thin. Take a look for yourself:
THAT'S THE SAME PERSON YOU CHUMPS. FOR THE SAME PHOTOSHOOT.
I guess it's easy to judge others publically in your little Facebook bubble of non-reality. I think it's all too easy for these people to forget that the girls they are criticising are actually real people. They're not just dolls. Upton is only 19, and Palvin- 18! Come on!
Anyway, rant over. Perhaps we all need to take a leaf out of the book of feminism and support each other's body shapes as females and unite. But probably, in conclusion, I actually think everyone should just leave other people alone. Change yourself if you're not happy, but don't try and change others.
Cheers.
L.
