"Banning ultra-thin models ain't good, y'all.
Or, as Melissa Fabello says: "There Is a Difference Between Acknowledging That a Body Type Exists and Glorifying That Body Type as Ideal – It's the Latter That We Have a Problem With." Yep. That.
Just in case your Facebook feed hasn't been flooded with this current news: after seemingly rejecting the idea just weeks ago, France has (along with Italy, Spain and Israel) not only banned thin models from the runway, but has officially made them illegal as of Friday.
And everyone's throwing a goddamn party.
These actions have been explained as an attempt to curtail body issues like anorexia nervosa and the country has also cracked down on any website that promotes "eating restrictions for a long period of time resulting in risk of mortality or damage to health," Agencies and websites breaking these rules are subject to thousands (sometimes up to $80k) of dollars in fines in addition to time in prison.
France is NOT fucking around.
Are eating disorders (with known high mortality rates) an appropriate reason to be concerned? Absolutely. What's not appropriate is the way this concern is being handled. I think the world needs to calm it's shit, take a step back, and think about why this isn't the "win" they want so badly.
5 REASONS WHY BANNING ULTRA-THIN MODELS IS BULLSHIT:
♥ These bodies exist in real life.
♥ BMI is bogus. Yes, still.
♥ Banning bodies is NEVER the answer.
♥ We're blaming the wrong guy.
♥ It's insulting.
I had a great conversation with Fattitude's Lindsey Averill one night where we were talking about Heidi Montag and her extensive plastic surgery. We were exploring where the line of "going too far" was which could therefore make her a "bad role model" for young fans.
My thought is this: Heidi's body is Heidi's body and no one gets to tell her what she can and can't do with it. Is it her responsibility to be a role model? Not really. Is it OUR responsibility to teach our young ones (and older ones) that you don't have to subscribe to certain standards of beauty to be okay? Yeah! Lets do that one!
Now replace the word Heidi with Runway Models.
In short: the banning of any body hurts every body. It's the whole- "my oppression is your oppression, and vice versa" thing. So lets give everyone the information and empowerment to go out and make their own decisions about their life and body. This will then allow US to make decisions about our life and body.
And jesus christ, that's what we're all here fighting for- right?"
See explanations @ The Militant Baker