Even top models like Gigi Hadid aren’t immune to body shaming. The 20-year-old “it” girl has been strutting her stuff on the catwalks of New York, Milan and is now prepping for Paris. But some seem to think her body doesn’t belong on the runway.
According to Hadid’s IMG agency, she has 35-inch hips and a 25-inch waist a on a 5-foot-10.5-inch frame.
“For the modelling industry, this is called ‘fat,'” a Moroccan model wrote on Instagram. She and many others believe Hadid’s name (and her 6.5 million Insta-followers) is the only reason she’s getting by in the industry.
Hadid is the daughter of Yolanda Foster, of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills; and stepdaughter of songwriter and record producer David Foster. Her dad is a wealthy Middle Eastern real estate tycoon.
“She might be a socialite but that doesn’t make her a model,” wrote a woman who said Hadid is “too fat for a model.”
Other women agreed with her. “Miss piggy,” read one comment. “She is a bit chubby for catwalk,” said another. “Gigi looks huge compared to the models.” “Her stomach looks fat.” Her thighs were also criticized, as was her walk.
The onslaught prompted Hadid to address the comments on Instagram, saying, “It’s 2015…Yes, I have boobs, I have abs, I have a butt, I have thighs.
“Your mean comments don’t make me want to change my body,” Hadid wrote. “If I didn’t have the body I do, I wouldn’t have the career I do.”
She acknowledged that she doesn’t have the same body type as the other models in shows. She added, though, that fashion is art. And art evolves.
“I hope everyone gets to a place in their life where they’d rather talk about the things that inspired them over the things that bring others down. At least be open, if not part of the change, because it’s undeniably happening.”
WATCH: France has joined Italy, Spain and Israel in banning undernourished, super skinny models from the catwalk. Breaking the ban could land designers in jail. Mike Armstrong reports.
Are women each other’s own worst enemy?
University of Ottawa psychologist Tracy Vaillancourt believes women’s viciousness “is born out of jealousy.”
Cheryl Dellasega, a Penn State professor and founder of a relationship program for girls, agrees. Social media, unfortunately, only makes it easier for bullies to be mean, she says.
“I’m pretty sure the body-shamers wouldn’t say the same things in person.”
She also points out that men don’t seem to have the same problem with one another. If you were to consider the evolutionary perspective, women traditionally competed with one another for the protection or sense of provision that a man provided. It’s a “biological thing,” Dellasega explained. Even though that may no longer be the case, it’s one way to explain why some women are still so nasty to each other. It might just boil down to insecurity.
READ MORE: What dogs can teach us about jealousy
Women tend to be much more verbal than men, as well, hence there’s a greater chance of them being involved in a war of words.
Dellasega said “rule-breakers” like Hadid, who in this case could be seen as challenging the traditional norms of the industry’s runway standards, always tend to get more criticism.
Hadid also appears to have sparked a debate over what women are supposed to look like. People criticize the models who are too skinny, but then don’t like when they have “too much” meat on their bones either.
“There seems to be no happy medium. When anger boils up and is targeted at one woman, I think it’s a reflection of collective frustration with the culture at large.”
“As we see more girls in sports and as they learn to compete in a healthy way, there will be less of this jealousy over appearance,” Dellasega predicted.
“I see a change already in young women already, shifting to being more supportive of each other and being able to look at something and not be jealous, but use that as motivation to do better yourself.”
That shift was evident on social media. Hadid was showered with praise, which far outnumbered the hateful comments, from girls admitting they wished they looked that good.
https://instagram.com/p/7ovAm2jCSI/
Amid the thousands of positive messages (including one from Tyra Banks), this is one that stood out:
WATCH: ET Canada’s exclusive interview with Gigi Hadid at her Elle Canada cover shoot
Comments