andworksettings.Ontheotherhand,displaying
diverseandrealisticportrayalsofwomen’s
bodies,liketheimagesinProject#ShowUs,
leadstoimprovedbodyconfidence.”
Butbrands,whoareprimarilysellinga
product,canonlydosomuch.That’swherethe
Instagramcommunitycomesin.Radicalbody
activistSonyaReneeTaylorisoneofmany
makingwavesinthe‘fatacceptancemovement’
online.ThewriterandartistlaunchedTheBody
IsNotAnApologymovementaftera Facebook
postofherselfina corsetwentviral.
TheAmerican,whohaswrittena bookofthe
samename,iscurrentlylivingonWaihekeon
anEdmundHillaryFellowship.Morethan
bodypositivity,shepromotestheideaof
“radical self-love”. “Body positivity is valuablebutit isindividual-focusedonhowwefeel
aboutourownbodies,”Sonyasays.
“Iaminterestedinhowourbeliefsaboutour
ownbodiesimpactthelivesofotherbodieson
theplanet.Spreadingradicalself-lovemeanswe
candivestfromsystemsthattellusthatour
worthcanonlybeattainedina systemof
comparisonwherewearemorevaluableorless
valuablethanotherbodiesintheworld.”
Sonyawasoneoftheintervieweesonthefirst
seasonoftheCoolBodiesClub, a monthlypodcast
celebrating“allbodies”,hostedbyChristchurch
friendsSarahKelleher,GemmaSymeandMike
Field.“Iwasfedupwiththenarrativesaround
bodiesandnoticedhowharmfultheywerefor
everybody,”Sarahexplains.
“I had an operation when I was a child thatPHOTOGRAPHYGetty(Zach Miko).“Whenwomenexperiencebodydissatisfaction,they
experiencenegativeconsequencesacrosskeyareas,
includingtheirhealthandwellbeing,theirrelationships,
and their aspirations in education and work”
DiversityshinesAustraliantransgendermodelAndrejaPejic(secondfromleft)frontsthecampaignfortheBondsIntimately
collectionalongsidemodels(fromleft)MaiaCotton,MadeleineHuntandShanayaPeters.It’sAndreja’sfirstunderwearcampaignand
the first time a trans model has been the face of an international underwear campaign in the Southern Hemisphere.