well, it's about that time again. another weekly post from us. another word trying to reach out to everyone in the world especially parents who have children struggling with body image. although these posts may seem redundant or unnecessary to some, it may be the saving grace for others.
"it only takes one person to make a difference."
i discovered this video online while scrolling through my facebook one day, i would say about a year ago. this really caught my attention and i had a loss for words after watching it. it literally changed my perspective about how models are portrayed in magazines, commercials, and everywhere throughout media.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17j5QzF3kqE
this link was actually featured on many talk shows like the Ellen show and Oprah to spread the word and let it be known what this girl truly looked like and how she felt about the specific message that was meant to be sent by this. with over a staggering 10 million views on YouTube, this is something that has spoken to families all across the world.
i feel that many people can see the difference in things and learn to understand what issues are going on in the world if it is told to them. i mean literally, this ideal body image expectation for women that is help nowadays is nearly impossible as it shows in this video by the endless Photoshop done to this already beautiful woman. to go along with this video and the powerful message of how much a woman's appearance is valued, it is almost a staple that little girls learn starting at a very young age of how to act and what to wear and how to look a certain way to be accepted or popular.
i started to read this book called "butter" about a month ago, and man is it a read. you don't even have to be a regular book worm to really get into this book. it's all about a young boy who is morbidly obese and trying to get his point across that all he is really looking for is acceptance from those around him because he has always been patronized ever since he could remember. so, what better than to record his over-eating binge online and make it viral? he began to do this and of course it did attract attention from others, but it wasn't the fulfilling attention he intended for. it was a mocking type of attention but he still thought of it as becoming popular. it continued to escalate with no adult supervision over his live streaming website which in the end, still no one had told an adult about Butter’s website, the one where he claims he is going to eat himself to death on new year’s. Social institutions are woven to help with the flexibility of being able to hand certain situations throughout a child's life (pg. 114), however if it is not taken into the right hands and helped in the correct way it can lead to some very negative coping strategies.
so my conclusion comes down to whether to be the positive or not to be. it's almost vital that everyone should see the different types of media being put out for parents and children of all ages to prevent any more issues regarding body image. it's a serious issue that must be taken care of through educators, families, and through one's own knowledge.
until then, i'll leave it to you all to choose whether being the change or just letting the issue keep go on is the better decision.