Supermodel Says Skinny-Shaming Is Just As Bad As Fat-Shaming. So Stop It!

Australian Supermodel Robyn Lawley has been attracting a lot of attention over the past year and a bit. Last year she was famously named as the first plus-size face of Ralph Lauren, and the year before that was one of the first plus size models to appear on the cover of the Prestigious Vogue Italia.

But it’s her outspokenness against “size-ism” that has been our favorite thing about her. She once said that she is sick of being called ‘plus-sized’ and that the skinny models should in fact be labeled ‘minus-sized’. After all, at size 16, she represents more of the majority of women around the world than the size zero models.

However, there have obviously been some miscommunications along the way, as there are critics taking her words and saying she is a hater of all skinny women. Not so! In fact, Robyn hates any talk which centers around a woman’s size and says we all need to just stop it!

In an interview with the Guardian, she explains how she tried at one point early in her career to stay skinny and join the mainstream models, but eventually realized that was not going to work and it made her miserable. She moved to New York, and started plus-size modeling as America has the biggest market for curvier models.

She has become somewhat of a figurehead for the curvy model community, a moniker which she doesn’t necessarily warm to as it has some negative connotations. She says the “real women have curves” movement is a blatant offense to naturally skinny girls and thinks it is just as bad as calling curvy women fat.

“Curves don’t epitomize a woman. Saying, ‘Skinny is ugly’ should be no more acceptable than saying fat is. I find all this stuff a very controlling and effective way of making women obsess over their weight, instead of exploiting their more important attributes, such as intellect, strength and power. We could be getting angry about unequal pay and unequal opportunities, but we’re too busy being told we’re not thin enough or curvy enough. We’re holding ourselves back.”

Robyn would rather focus on bringing diversity to fashion and celebrating all shapes, sizes and ethnicities, another thing she says the runways need more of. She wants all young girls to be represented in the world of fashion so no one feels left out. Shaming any type of body is never good, and we need to find better ways to accurately portray the female body in a healthy light.

While the 6ft 2inch model-turned swimwear designer is earning far more money as a plus size model than as a “straight model” (as is the industry term) she is not putting all her eggs in one basket and has her sights set on a few other avenues, such as photography, and cooking. She has a tumblr called RobynLawleyEats and told the Guardian she started that because although she is a model, she is still a normal girl who is not immune to media pressure.

“I’ve seen the magazines, the TV shows, the celebrity articles, the same as everyone else. I’m not immune just because I’m a model. And I know they have a devastating effect on young girls. Don’t use the words fat, skinny or diet. Tell your daughter constantly that you love her body the way it is.”

Enough of the body shaming, let’s diversity and promote acceptance! Encourage one another instead of tearing your fellow sister down. Thanks Robyn for spreading an important message.