Back in high school and college, it was normal banter among us girls to tease each other about our breast sizes. There was the regular encouragement that small-breasted girls would still grow a cup C or more. While the ones with bigger breasts were jokingly told to “cover up.” Sometimes guys would also join in.
Now, I’d often look back on how we’d nonchalantly laugh about our insecurities, and possibly normalizing this kind of discussion. Making it okay to tell women with small boobs that they look subpar and that big boobs are better. Likewise, women with big boobs are also told to hide their cleavage, else, they’re deemed slutty.
Whether you notice or not, “boob shaming” is common. Just a few days ago, model Jess Wilson shared on Instagram Stories the harsh comments she got for having small boobs. You can still find those comments on some of her posts, along with several arguments defending Jess.
What is with this obsession with having big boobs and cleavage? It’s no problem if someone prefers them. But going through lengths to impose onto another person that it’s the only standard of women’s beauty is pure narrow-mindedness.
Then again, if people love bigger boobs so much, why do they also censor them? Last year, Susan Sarandon was called out for baring her cleavage at the Screen Actors Guild red carpet. Piers Morgan even called it “horribly inappropriate.” It’s the same when Kim Kardashian posted her infamous naked mirror selfie and was called a bad role model to her kids because of it.
Would Susan Sarandon wear this to a funeral? No.
It was thus horribly inappropriate for an In Memoriam tribute. pic.twitter.com/hMoGChJY8D— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) February 3, 2016
HAPPY #INTERNATIONALWOMENSDAY https://t.co/PStwuNp9bl pic.twitter.com/QFI40gkyUO
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) March 8, 2016
Attn noted that this is happening due to the influence of the media, patriarchy, advertising, and the fashion industry, among other factors. We are fooled into thinking that a certain body type is acceptable. Anyone who looks otherwise is subject to harsh criticism. And if they feel comfortable in their body or want to enhance it, they’ll be judged too.
Some people just can’t get it over their heads that the amount of breasts or cleavage one has is not a measure of their worth. Nor should they be topics for one’s sexist beliefs. The ideal body is how a person sees and accepts themselves, and not the standards dictated by society.
So what if one woman is flat-chested and the other is busty? It’s their body and their choice, and not anyone’s business.
Screengrabs and featured image courtesy of Jess Wilson’s Instagram account
Follow Preen on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and Viber
Related stories:
Tattoos, Women, and Slut-Shaming: Why Does It Happen Anyway?
Why We Need to Get Over Fatphobia and Body Shaming Ways
On Body Positivity As the Middle Finger to Body Shaming
Let Go of the #Fitspo: The Best Sound Bites From Preen Sessions on Body Positivity
How Cellulite Became the Enemy…and Why It Really Shouldn’t Be
