"The body is a blessing not a curse. The body is a resting place and a vessel."
The question has never been whether or not full-figured women are beautiful.
And the most compelling part of this conversation is not whether "plus-size" women and fashion models are worthy of being celebrated in the same way "straight-size" women and models are. FYI: Plus-size in the fashion world is considered to be a size 8 and up; most plus-size models are around a size 14.
But we are missing the point in attempting to categorize women using one label or another. It is simply a waste of time - for two main reasons: 1) The grey area between the two categories (women sizes 6-16, say!?) is ill-defined and nebulous 2) There are 160 million women in the U.S. and the average American woman measures in at a categorically messy size 14. If the national average is a size 14, then plus-size is in fact the norm. And so below that national average is what then.. minus-size?
Tara Lynn and Crystal Renn featured on the cover of Times London
The whole thing is exhausting. But we, children of the Age of Reason, how we love nomenclature! The problem is that if women must necessarily fit into said categories then one group is cast against the other, its team members fighting a lonely, ceaseless, mildly insane battle.
This is not the way.
Jennie Runk was one of H&M's first curvy models. Her appearance in this ad caused a flurry of media responses and prompted a new conversation about the fashion world's exclusivity. You can check out H&M's new Plus-Size line on their website.
When we make a stand for something, we raise awareness about an issue and ask for equality/justice/recognition only until it becomes clear that it is for the good of all that such a thing be widely accepted. We fight for it only until it becomes unnecessary to do so. All the effort is simply for the thing to become normalized. Think Free Speech, Civil Rights and Women's Suffrage.
The relevant question really is: Why has the body become a tool for comparison, suffering and commerce?
Crystal Renn tells her story of transition from the world of straight-size modeling which brought her near death and who has since embraced her body's natural shape and reemerged as one of the most successful models in the industry today. Her new book, "Hungry" gives an account of her struggles and her triumph on her inspiring journey as a woman and a model .
The point is that it is not about the body. The body is a blessing not a curse. The body is a resting place and a vessel. Loving the body and enjoying being in it is after all, a crucial first step to truly knowing oneself, to becoming Whole. And it is your birthright to be Whole.
I am interested in how women and men FEEL in their bodies. I am interested in how we embody this fleshy vessel. I have finally begun to understand and to experience that BodyLOVE is what makes a person beautiful, healthy and vibrant.
Here's the real quantum formula: Love+Appreciation+Acceptance of the Body = The Ultimate Beauty Elixir.
Ashley Graham - Top Model, curves advocate, designer and role model. Check her out at www.ashleygraham.com