Last year, the Harvard women’s rugby team created the Rugged Grace project. The project was aimed at promoting body confidence and included a series of photographs of the team with positive messages written on their bodies. Brooke Kantor (’15) was a leader of the project and also co-authored a piece in the Harvard Political Review titled “An Exercise in Body Image.” Due to her contributions to promoting positive body image, Brooke is or Campus Celebrity of the week.
Name: Brooke Kantor
Hometown: Houston, TX
Year: 2015
House: Dunster
Concentration: Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations
What are you involved with on campus?
I have played rugby for four years and I have been involved in the Harvard Political Review for 2 years.
Tell me a little bit about Rugged Grace.
Rugged Grace is a project aimed at celebrating all body types. We wanted to demonstrate how women who are strong and use their bodies for intense physical activity, such as rugby, are beautiful—simply beautiful.
What inspired the project?
We wanted to share with the rest of the world our team’s natural body positivity. We would frequently have competitions over who had gained more weight over the course of the week and that is something you don’t see very often between a group of girls.
What was the public reaction?
Public reaction was so great. It sounded like we were able to inspire a lot of people to think about women’s bodies and sports in a different way.
If you could give young girls one piece of advice about body confidence, what would it be?
Your body exists to allow you to be the best you. Don’t let anybody tell you how it’s supposed to be.
What are your plans for next year?
I am hoping to be working in D.C.
What will you miss most about Harvard?
My rugby team and my friends. I have met such great people here and I sincerely hope the distance between us next year doesn’t prevent us from staying close.