Bea-YOU-tiful

What comes to your mind when you hear the word 'beautiful'? 

Our perceptions of beauty and body image are mainly shaped by the media.

It's always 'in' to be thin and this is being repeatedly reinforced by countless advertisements and reality shows such as America's Next Top Model. Media often sends out the message that thinner women are more pretty, beautiful, respected and even  more successful. Bigger sized women are thus often influenced to feel bad and inconfident in their body. Often, they become victims of various forms of discrimination. 

Despite people celebrating plus-sized celebrities such as Queen Latifah, it's impossible to ignore the fact that size discrimination is still rampant today. Undesirable characteristics such as lazy, slow, clumsy and even ugly, are often associated with bigger people. 

Do you remember Ursula the Sea Witch from Disney fairytale The Little Mermaid? 

Fat, Ugly, Evil. Does it bother you that Ursula is one of the few fat Disney Characters, and her role as a villain reflects society's discomfort with bigger sized people?  

How should plus-sized ladies deal with these negative stereotypes?

Do they really have to go to the extent of starving themselves to become stick thin so they can be beautiful and more respected by the society?

People around you would say they want to go on a diet or start hitting the gym regularly because they are 'getting fat'. You hear this so often that you probably don't think much of it; it's only normal to want to be in shape. But it strikes me as being discriminatory- as if being big is a taboo. This only highlight how deeply-rooted in our psyches being 'thin' or having some sort of ideal hourglass figure is. 

In fact, plus-sized ladies are fighting the pressure from society everyday, to fit into  the stereotypical perception of beauty. This is a constant struggle between being happy with themselves, or to change to get acceptance by the society. Many of them give in to the pressure, and develop a poor body image overtime. 

But that shouldn't be the way, it's unfair if only thin women are considered beautiful. 

Of course, this biased perception of beauty will not change overnight.

But it's time we tell the world that we should stop thinking in terms of size when we think about beauty.

Big or Thin, we're all beautiful, and bigger women deserves to feel beautiful as much as slimmer ones.
Yes, beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.
Let's encourage plus-sized women to carry themselves confidently today, and let their beauty shine through from their hearts.

To all big/plus-sized women out there: 

Chin up, YOU're Bea-YOU-tiful because YOU love YOUR body.

Big Is BeaUtiful. :)