Wow, I'm so excited about Odyssey Online partnering with Victoria's Secret!!! I'd love to be a PINK Ambassador! I just have one question?
What if I'm a plus size woman, a demographic that Victoria's Secret refuses to cater to?
Sarcasm aside, I honestly hate what Victoria's Secret represents.
Look at that body positivity! Here, we have a picture of 10 women who the vast majority of the population can't relate to in the slightest.
Even thin women may not have a thigh gap, absolutely no stretch marks, or that perfect sunkissed glow, but the reality is that the average woman in the United States is now a size 16. Gasp. That's PLUS SIZE!!!!!!
Dammit women, get it together! This is the perfect body. Get on board.
Granted, they did end up changing this campaign slogan, but it's entirely unacceptable that this is the ONLY image Victoria's Secret is showing young women. Just look at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show or the average Victoria's Secret ad. It's unacceptable that Odyssey Online, a group that claims to want to represent millennials, has entered a partnership with this body-shaming garbage fire. Millennials, as a whole, are very accepting, very body-positive people.
This decision does not include me as a contributor. In fact, when they sent an email asking for input, I was vehemently against the partnership, writing several paragraphs on why I felt it was a bad move and excluded many women. It supports a message that very few women are okay with endorsing--one that says that there's only one body type that can be beautiful.
So since the Odyssey Online clearly has no regard for body-positivity, I feel that as a contributor, it's time to use this platform to spread it anyway.
Here are some fast facts.
1) You don't have to fit into Victoria's Secret PINK to be beautiful or trendy.
2) You don't have to be under a certain size to be beautiful.
3) You deserve clothing options that allow you to express your personality. You should not have to wear things you don't like just because it's the only thing you can find that fits you.
4) Victoria's Secret (or any company, really) should be making clothing to fit you. You are not the only fat girl in the world, in fact, you're in the majority. You're too good for their clothing anyway.
5) You do not need to be ashamed of your body. You are not a "before" picture in a transformation that's waiting to happen. You are complete; you do not need to change anything about yourself.
You are so amazing and so beautiful, and I know that it isn't just skin-deep. Odyssey Online may endorse a company that supports body shaming, but I don't. And I'll be here, fighting body shaming every step of the way, in whatever way I can.
