Ashley Graham Throws Shade And Amy Schumer Backs Down

It seems not everyone is a fan of Amy Schumer, and among those finding exception with Schumer’s unfiltered opinions is model Ashley Graham. The model and activist for plus size women recently called out Amy in a Cosmopolitan interview, specifically citing Schumer’s hypocritical stance on making a living as a plus-sized woman and then objecting to others lumping her in with that same classification. Graham was bold and unapologetic in her criticism of the comedian, and it seemed that there might be a feud brewing between the two women, but Schumer’s response seemed to indicate that she’s unwilling to take on Ashley in a public forum.

Ashley Graham Calls Out Amy Schumer

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Ashley Graham is very outspoken when it comes to standing up against body shamers and bullies. Whether she’s modeling or investing her time on her plus-size women’s clothing line, Graham is standing up for women who don’t necessarily fit the Hollywood ideal of what a woman should look like, so it’s not surprising that she finds offense with women who claim that plus-size status only when it’s convenient. Exposing one such person to the public, Graham recently called out Amy Schumer in a Cosmo interview.

“I can see both sides, but Amy talks about being a big girl in the industry,” 28-year-old Graham says, referring to Schumer’s objection to being called a plus-size woman in an issue of Glamour magazine. “You thrive on being a big girl, but when you’re grouped in with us, you’re not happy about it? That, to me, felt like a double standard.”

Ashley couldn’t be plainer, and the incident does make Schumer look like a hypocrite, so maybe Graham is right in suggesting Amy is a part of the problem in the way plus-size women are treated by the media and the fashion industry. One would expect Amy to respond to Ashley with a fiery response of her own, but whatever response Graham may have expected, she couldn’t have guessed the bold and blunt comedian would cop out so easily.

“I totally understand Ashley’s feelings. I don’t group myself in with her because she is unbelievably beautiful,” Schumer said, according to New York Daily News. “Nothing but respect for her.”

Ashley Graham No Longer Calls Herself A Plus-Size Model

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While she may object to Amy Schumer’s efforts to distance herself from the plus-size label, Graham herself has stopped calling attention to her status as a plus-size model, simply labeling herself as a model. By not using the “plus-size” qualifier, some of Graham’s critics suggest she’s also stepping back from the group she so earnestly hopes to represent, but Ashley says nothing could be further from the truth.

“Just because I’m not calling myself plus-size doesn’t mean I’m not representing a woman who is … I’m giving curvy women a seat at a table that we’ve never been invited to before —a table with high-end fashion people who have never considered us beautiful,” Says Graham.

In her Cosmo interview, Graham was just as outspoken about her past as a victim of domestic violence as she has been about her efforts to combat the body shaming of plus-size women in society. Ashley openly revealed that she was once in an abusive relationship with an alcoholic, recounting an incident of abuse that involved flipping a sofa over on top of her. Graham says the lover in question never beat her or left her bruised and battered, but she says she now recognizes that it was abuse nonetheless.

“Looking back, I should’ve left, but I was an insecure woman in a terrible relationship who did not know herself,” admits Ashley Graham.

Ms. Graham has since moved on. She’s happily married to Justin Ervin now.

[Image by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for Samsung]