Simone Mariposa was sick and tired of hearing constant negative comments about her plus-size bod. So she decided to do something about it.
On July 23, the 23-year-old model and blogger created the hashtag #WeWearWhatWeWant to highlight plus-size women wearing outfits that society often deems “unacceptable” for bigger women.
“#WeWearWhatWeWant symbolizes women building their confidence, and loving themselves enough to break the mold and challenge the societal norms of what’s ‘acceptable’ for big women to do,” Mariposa told The Huffington Post.
Mariposa was inspired to create the hashtag after reading a story of a plus-size woman who was judged by strangers because of her outfit. “I find it important to highlight plus women being free and fabulous with their wardrobes because we live in a society that constantly polices our bodies,” she said. “Plus-size women are constantly told to cover up, not because we look bad in revealing clothing, but because of people’s personal lack of comfort.”
“Showing skin isn’t exclusive to smaller girls. It’s okay for a plus size women to let her body breath in her clothing,” Mariposa tweeted. “Stop making it ‘unacceptable’ for plus women to wear clothes that show skin.”
The hashtag quickly took off with hundreds of women responding to Mariposa’s image with their own photos of them in their favorite outfits.
Mariposa told HuffPost that she hopes the hashtag gives plus-size women a safe space to talk about their experiences. “The story of the plus-size woman isn’t commonly addressed because we are often made to feel subhuman,” she said. “But with powerful hashtags like this, we are given a voice that no one can ignore.”
Way to do you, Simone. Scroll below to see more of the tweets from women who used the hashtag.
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