INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

Ashley Graham Pushes Back At Weight Critics With Powerful Letter

By Niki Cruz
Published on: 07:54 PST, Aug 2, 2016

Ashley Graham knows she can’t please her weight critics, but that didn’t stop her from talking out about said critics who trash the full-figured model every chance they get. Being a plus sized model who is changing the image of fuller body types, and Graham became a quick target, possibly because she isn’t what people or the media is used to.

Opening up about dealing with critics over her weight, she wrote a letter in Lena Dunham’s Lenny newsletter. She addresses the most recent backlash she experienced after she shared a photo of her posing in a crop top and skirt. She wrote at the time she didn’t think anything of uploading the picture, but to her surprise, the image of her in the skimpy outfit went viral and not for a positive reason.

“I didn’t give it a second thought when I posted it, but soon the image went viral. Not because of how good I looked wearing a high-end designer that doesn’t usually market to women my size, but because of people’s misguided views on women’s bodies and who owns the rights to them.”

She then went on to copy and paste some of the comments off of her Instagram page. Some people attacked her slimmer figure and accused her of “conforming” to mainstream’s idea of a perfect body, while others slammed her for showing off her body, which Graham wrote was in celebration of how she looked.

And while some people accused Graham of having a slimmer figure, the Sports Illustrated cover girl says that it’s just angles and she hasn’t lost any weight.

“The reality is I haven’t lost a pound this year. In fact, I’m actually heavier than I was three years ago, but I accept my body as it is today. I work out not to lose weight but to maintain my good health. And anyway, if I did want to lose weight, it would be no one’s decision but my own.”

She went on to write, “To some I’m too curvy. To others I’m too tall, too busty, too loud, and, now, too small — too much, but at the same time not enough.”

In support of the letter, Ashley Graham tweeted the following to her fans.

As stated, this isn’t the first time Ashley Graham has been criticized for her weight. As the Inquisitr reported, fashion designer Cheryl Tiegs, criticized Graham for being on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition.

Tiegs took a stance against Graham, calling the cover “unhealthy.” She went on to say that she didn’t think it was healthy to glamorize full-figured women. Tiegs immediately saw backlash after her comments went public. She caused such an uproar that Graham thanked her supporters.

Tiegs took to Twitter to clarify her comments and said, “To clarify re bodyweight. Being anorexic/bulimic/overweight all connected to health problems. I want all to be as healthy as they can.”

She later deleted the tweet and apologized with a letter via the Huffington Post. Although she didn’t apologize for her comments, but rather tried to clarify them again, she did commend Graham for “the positive influence you have on helping women to love themselves.”

She said her comments were made to address the worries she had about the influence the media had when talking about societal norms and how that may lead to diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.

[Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP Images]

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