For body-shaming culture to be eradicated, society and mainstream media must dismantle all criteria of beauty.
In this digital age, some people’s bodies have one feature that limits their inner confidence and prevents them from appreciating the beauty of their perfection. But who developed this toxic model, who imposed false beauty standards, who convinced us that we were not already perfect? The explanation is straightforward: the mainstream media and the multibillion-dollar plastic cosmetic surgery business. However, are these the only two factors determining which body types are attractive, or have we, as consumers of their agendas, contributing to a system that shames persons who do not naturally fit into the ever-changing ‘beauty box’?
There was a time when having a dark skin tone was stigmatized both inside and outside the black community. As a result, many people bought bleaching creams to lighten their skin tones to meet the social standard of beauty. However, darker skin tone and melanin are now prominently included in pop-cultural discussions. Cosmetic brands that now use dark skin facial models are riding this wave. After all, black is the new attractive; it’s the new vogue. As a result, tanning and blackfishing have increased (Skin tone filters and make-up that darken the complexion of Caucasians and light skin individuals).
Being slim was attractive for a time, but then it became heavy. As a result, ladies are having implants. It was full lips at one time, and people of color were made fun of for having large lips. But then, in the 2010s, there were the Kardashians. Everyone wants a lip filler now because large lips are the new s*xy.’
Since the dawn of time, the list and evolution of these beauty standards have been limitless. Suppose it is not entirely shattered in our generation. In that case, there will be vestiges of body shaming culture against individuals who do not naturally fit into them today and future unborn generations.