Stop Body Shaming

Billie Eilish regularly chooses to wear over-sized baggy clothing to protect herself from being sexualized. A few days ago, paparazzi snapped candid photos of the 18 year old in oatmeal colored shorts and a camisole taking a walk in LA. Sounds like a regular girl taking a walk in a regular outfit, right? Well the internet blew up with the sharing of the rare photo and bodyshamers quickly took to social media to comment on her body and her size...again.

This isn't the first time Billie Eilish has come across mean bodyshaming. A few months ago, in April she was called a slut for wearing a bathing suit. Some people went even further to say she was no longer a good example to young girls and lost their respect...all because she wore a swimsuit! She replied then with, "I can't win," which is sadly how it is for most female public figures as their bodies get constantly scrutinized across the internet and in person. Billie Eilish replied to all the recent comments on her IG story in a calm way by re-posting a TikTok created by Chizi Duru. The TikTok says: "Y’all gotta start normalizing real bodies, okay? Not everybody has a wagon behind them, okay? Guts are normal; they’re normal. Boobs sag, especially after breastfeeding. Instagram isn’t real." She also posted a photo of her in a tank top with the caption, "do you really wanna go back in time?" (referring to the slut shaming that occurred in April over her wearing a bathing suit).

On May 26, 2020 Eilish released a short film on YouTube called, "Not My Responsibility," which quotes, "The body I was born with , Is it not what you wanted? If I wear what is comfortable , I am not a woman . If I shed the layers , I'm a slut ... We make assumptions about people , based on their size . We decide who they are . We decide what they're worth . If I wear more , if I wear less . Who will decide what that makes me? What that means? Is my value based only on your perception? Or is your opinion of me not my responsibility." Many females, famous or not can relate to the words in the short film. It seems that no matter what a woman chooses to wear, someone will have an opinion. Eilish encourages girls to wear what they feel confident in as she herself came to the conclusion that it is simply not her responsibility to please everyone.

And so, a few questions for all the people who feel the need to share their opinion on someone else's body on the internet: Does commenting on a young girl's body make you feel confident? Does if make you feel more secure in yourself? Before commenting on a women's body, or any body for that matter, put yourself in their shoes and make sure you'd like to be the one receiving that comment. More importantly try to shift comments about someone's physical body to comments about their talents, creativity, curiosity or intelligence because young people need to know their worth is more then their physical appearance.

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