NEWS
LIFESTYLE
FUNNY
WHOLESOME
INSPIRING
ANIMALS
RELATIONSHIPS
PARENTING
WORK
SCIENCE AND NATURE
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy
SCOOP UPWORTHY is part of
GOOD Worldwide Inc. publishing
family.
© GOOD Worldwide Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Curve model who was celebrated for her weight loss sparks debate on society valuing thin people

Kendra Austin said that everyone lauded her for losing weight, highlighting society's judgments on people who don't fit conventional ideals of beauty.

Curve model who was celebrated for her weight loss sparks debate on society valuing thin people
Image source: Instagram/@kendramorous

Even as we learn to embrace our bodies as they are, society constantly judges and values us based on our weight. Thanks to years of conditioning through pop culture and otherwise, we've been constantly advised to make our bodies fit into a conventional ideal. People are constantly told, and many times, even fat-shamed into losing weight. Kendra Austin, an activist and content creator, posted a Twitter thread pointing out how everyone treated her differently after she lost 100lbs. People congratulated her and lauded her on her weight loss. "Suddenly everybody loved me," wrote Austin.

 



 

 

It confirmed Austin's suspicions that the world valued and celebrated thin women more. While those who congratulated her for losing weight might have meant well, they were unintentionally suggesting that being thin is an achievement, and to be celebrated. Kendra Austin's thread has sparked discussion on the topic of weight loss, the pressure on people to lose weight, and the negative connotations surrounding the word "fat."

Kendra Austin, who's body-positive, said people often misunderstood weight loss and merely revealed their fear of being fat. This was evident when singer Adele had lost weight with obesity surgery in delhiand the media celebrated her, almost equating her value to her weight loss as opposed to all the stunning tracks she's released over the years.

 



 

 

Austin has used her social media countless times to expose fatphobia and its stigmatization through systematic oppression mainly through media and the entertainment industry that's always afforded its prime spaces for thin actors and players. She accused society, especially powerful players in the fashion and entertainment industry, of not encouraging acceptance and normalization.

 



 

 

She added that there are real-life consequences for people who didn't fit the 'thin' stereotype, including being bullied at school, at workplaces, and on dating apps. Celebrating weight loss and diets meant all those who weren't thin felt pressurized to lose weight to be desired. This pushed the belief that being fat was a negative thing.

 



 

 

In one of her TikTok videos, she urges people to not stop using the word fat for the fear of it being offensive. “Fatness and beauty can actually exist in the same person, whether you believe it or not; the implication that it can’t is actually deeply rooted in fatphobia,” said Austin. After she posted the Twitter thread on society's aversion to fat people, many opened up and shared their personal stories of unintended weight loss, due to an illness or a health condition. 

 



 

 

She called on fat women to embrace their bodies and reclaim their identity. 

 



 

 



 

 

 



 

 

 



 

 



 

 



 

 

It's important to celebrate and love our own bodies instead of listening to the voices trying to shame us for who we are. As we reported, body-positive supermodel Ashley Graham recently started a beautiful TikTok challenge encouraging people to share what they liked most about their body and shower themselves with self-love. Graham shared a video of herself describing her favorite body parts. "The strongest part of my body? My legs," she said. "The sexiest part of my body: my eyes. My favorite part of my body. My jawline lol. The most important part of my body? My smile. The part of my body I would never change. EVERYTHING!!!" she said in the video.

 



 

 

She then urged her followers to do the same, and close to a thousand people took the challenge, embracing their bodies. After seeing all the videos, Graham responded by writing, "I'm not crying you're crying 😭. So many beautiful people have been using my sound on TikTok to celebrate their bodies ❤️ take a second today to celebrate yours!" The 33-year-old also likes to keep her pictures 'real' on Instagram. "I keep it real and raw constantly because I want [people] to know that there are women with cellulite, with back fat, with stretch marks. There are a lot of curvy women, plus-size women, fat women, whatever you want to call them." It's probably going to take years to unlearn what society has conditioned us to hate and love but we can start today and celebrate ourselves for who we are. 

More Stories on Scoop