Even in the most low profile media sources, average women are consistently depicted as skinny. Sure, some bigger women make it onto our screens and into the public eye, but most of them are in some way 'other'. Women over a size 4 are oversexualised, fetishised and mocked in the public eye. As a result, we have collectively fostered an environment where only a narrow selection of women in society are considered desirable or acceptable. We have so many preconceived notions about bigger women, be it about their sex life or the amount of aggression in their personalities. These types of generalisations are not made about women who fit nicely into the norm of society.
It wouldn't be that difficult to hire a couple of cheerleaders with big thighs or bulging stomachs. Sure, some people (insecure men and women) would proclaim disgust, but their opinions don't matter. And not just because they are sad individuals, but because their opinions would so easily change over time. If this new representation of women in media persisted for as little as ten years, I'm confident that even the loudest naysayers would soon (a) change their ways or (b) be quiet because their hurtful opinions would have been quelled by the new wave of thought.
While I think it's important for individual women to look how they want, dress how they want and eat what they want, I don't think it's enough to make a pervasive societal change. What we need is for those in control of the public opinion to change it slowly and steadily by creating a more inclusive image of what women look like and who they are. We are not defined by our size. We are different people who play various roles. We deserve to be viewed with as much frequency and respect as those women whom men have been taught to find attractive by media representation over the years. And we don't deserve for our fellow women to beat us down for their own gain.
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