C’mon, Topshop!
The British retailer is getting major flack after British student Becky Hopper put them on blast via Twitter for using ridiculously skinny mannequins. And by that we mean toothpick thin—the mannequin’s legs look like arms at best. Just look at the woman to the left of the mannequin, who wears a U.K. 8/10 (that’s a U.S. 4/6!), for some perceptive.
While Photoshop crimes are more the norm for skinny scandals, the ultra-thin mannequin issue isn’t exactly new either. Back in July, Scottish shopper Mel Fraser Twitter-shamed Primark, also a U.K. clothing store, for using mannequins with protruding ribs to market tops. And after getting more than 1,400 shares, Primark quickly yanked the super-thin mannequins from stores. La Perla has also been criticized for using rib-baring mannequins to advertise lingerie (which it also removed after a tweet).
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Twitter/Mel Fraiser
Topshop’s not alone this week among big-name retailers putting out bad body-image vibes—recall Walmart’s quickly pulled Halloween “Fat Girl Costumes” section? Or perhaps the latest Victoria’s Secret Perfect Body campaign will ring a loud body-shaming bell.
But it’s not all pain and no progress, people! A-listers galore are rallying to promote positive and realistic body images for women, with none so outspoken as Demi Lovato.
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“For so long it was the very skinny, frail model look, and that’s what I grew up looking at,” Lovato told E! News. “For me, I thought that’s what you had to look like, so growing up thinking that and then seeing women like [Kim Kardashian] and Beyoncé. I mean, Kim, say what you want about her, but she’s a very successful woman and she really kind of revolutionized what beauty was when she came on the scene. For me, I’m embracing that, and I want younger women to see that you don’t have to be something that you’re not.”
Amen, sister! But back to that teeny-tiny mannequin—no word from Topshop yet, but we wouldn’t be shocked if that mannequin vanished from stores overnight.
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