Thursday, July 12th, 2012
I don’t usually write articles on my blog unless I feel very strongly about an issue. As you’ve heard, there was a campaign staged by a 14 year old Julia Bluhm, who protested outside of Seventeen’s Magazine Offices. Bluhm wanted the magazine to feature at least “one un-airbrushed photo spread a month” and started a petition on change.org where she collected over 25,000 signatures. This is what she said “These pictures [in the magazine] look too perfect to be like anyone I know. You look around and most people you see on the streets or at school don’t really look like this”. Wow. Do you know how dumb that sounds?
Anyone who has a working brain and some common sense in them will not expect anyone on the street to look like the fashion models in the magazines. If you look at Vogue or any other fashion magazine and feel like you need to look like one of those models or you’ll feel worthless, you have a lot of self-esteem issues to work on. I don’t have a problem seeing beautiful girls in fashion spreads who have perfect bodies. I enjoy looking at them and they’re pleasing to the eyes. But if I were to look at these images and tell myself “My God, those long legs, that perfect butt with no cellulite, that gorgeous face with no pores, why can’t I look like them? Wah, Wah, Wah….”. Then I’m developing a problem based on something I know as a fact wasn’t real. Fashion Magazines should not feel pressured or forced to change the way they do their business just because some insecure women out there feel bad about themselves. Also, models don’t need to gain weight or eat more just so that some overweight Plain Janes out there will feel better about themselves. It’s like asking rich people to be modest because they’re making the poor people feel bad. Or asking professional wrestlers to stay at home and not work out because you know, their big muscles are making the skinny guys look bad.
One of my biggest pet peeves in life is when someone doesn’t want to take responsibility for themselves and be truly honest. I hate it when people knock the models down for being skinny or blame the fashion industry for promoting a narrow body image. Those people don’t want to take control over their own bodies, they want to find the reason to pass the blame and they are essentially saying “I’m powerless to change my body and as long as fashion magazines are flaunting skinny girls, I will never feel good about myself”. Their mentality at first is to place a blame and that’s never a good thing. I know that young teenage girls can be influenced by what they see in the media and from the magazines but they also need to learn to use their heads more. They can read fashion magazines and see the pictures as an inspiration and admire the beauty in others. If they’re going to blame fashion magazines for lowering their self-confidence, they can also blame their parents, the teachers, the community that they live in, Hollywood and the society. Heck, why not blame everybody? You can’t single out the fashion magazines as if it’s all their fault. As much as I think the teenagers who filed this petition are stupid, I feel that there are plenty more teenagers who are level-headed and smart enough to know that fashion magazines are not the problem for eating disorders or distorted body image issues but the individual’s refusal to take charge of their own personal life.
Why the hell do I want to see average looking people in the fashion magazines when I can see them on daily basis in my REAL LIFE? When I open a fashion magazine, I want to see a PERFECT 10. I want to see the most beautiful people and the most beautiful clothes. Fashion Editors don’t need to cater to people who don’t understand fashion. It’s a waste of time and energy. I want them to continue featuring the most beautiful models and do their business as usual without listening to those idiotic teenagers.
What about you? How do you feel?
That girl have serious problems, she only have to stop reading magazines, I have the same thought as you do, I want read fashion magazines to look for perfection.
I totally agree with what you have written. Its so idiotic to compare yourself to women in the magazines. You’ll never be like that so why strive to be. Imperfections are what makes people beautiful.
Very good review !
One of the few people to look at the other side of things !
The odd thing is, the women we are striving to become look emaciated and sick. That’s why I love the style diaries so much–the women posing are doing so on their own terms, love fashion, look fantastic and are a believable body type . . . .
oxoxoxoxo from San Francisco
Amy
http://bridechic.blogspot.com
Never thought about it this way but it seems pretty damn logical when you put it like this…
But what’s “perfect” anyway? To one person, “perfect” is super-skinny and tall, but to another, it’s a gorgeous, curvy hour-glass figure (though I’m sure that most of us will agree that “perfect” when it comes to skin is clear and spotless (save for some freckling)). I’d like to see more diversity (especially SIZE diversity – one reason why I like seeing celebrities as many of them are around my size (i.e. short and smaller than a size 2)) and agree that over-Photoshopping is cray, but I don’t think we should be telling publications what to do and how to do it. And I guess I’m guilty of Photoshopping too, because I often fix the lighting for my outfit post pics!
I totally agree. Beautiful Article.
I couldn’t agree with you more. I get so upset when I see people petitioning for things that totally breakdown the tradition of the fashion industry! It made me so upset, you couldn’t even understand. All some people want is change, change, change when they don’t understand how badly it could ruin the customs or the foundations of a prosperous organization more than centuries old.
It’s definitely interesting to hear your side of the opinion!
interesting views
http://underthefluorescents.blogspot.com/
ahh, this is exactly my thoughts aswell.
i’m over fashion magazines being blamed, feeling like it’s not okay to be skinny, that attempting to reach your own ‘perfection’ level isn’t possible.
the perfectly pretty is what inspires me the most with fashion magazines. i don’t want to lose that. x.
Ha, fun! I enjoyed reading this, really emotional article 😀
I agree with your point of view, as I don’t have any troubles with body image while flipping the pages of magazines. But on the other hand it was real joy for me looking at the dove advertising campaign with average women with curves, several years ago, if you remember those ads. Or looking at that curvy red hair from the Mad man.
But of course, magazines are magazines. And I buy them for a dose of beauty, because beauty inspires me! Otherwise would I watch reality TV.
And it’s totally true, that if you have a low self-eestem, blaming everybody for it won’t improve it.
This was such an insightful post. I’d never viewed it that way, but I must say, I agree with a lot of your arguments.
Well-said!!