When you search up female celebrities on the internet, the first article to pop up is “40 Fittest Celebries Over 40 – Hottest Celebs Over 40.” Among the numerous successful women on that list, there are celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Aniston, Shakira, and Charlize Theron. Now, don’t get me wrong, all of these women are absolutely beautiful, but instead of objectifying them by only talking about their bodies, why can’t we also acknowledge their successes? Why aren’t we talking about how Jennifer Lopez has received over 500 nominations in the entertainment, music, and fashion industries, AND won 161 of thos nominations? Why aren’t we talking about how Charlize Theron has won an Academy Award, Critics’ Choice Award, and a Golden Globe Award, among others?! Instead of just taking about how “hot” Jennifer Lopez looks at 50 years old, let’s talk about how she manages to juggle her professional career/successes, with motherhood, all while staying fit and beautiful!
One of my favorite artist’s right now is Billie Eilish and you can find me constantly jamming to one of her songs. At only 19 years of age, she has been nominated for over 100 awards and has won 48 of those! She won FIVE out of the six of her Grammy nominations which included four of the night’s biggest prizes. Yet, she has also publicly opened up about the reason she wears baggy clothing to combat the unfair double standard put on her. Eilish spoke that “nobody can have an opinion because they haven’t seen what’s underneath [in regards to her body.]” She also spoke about the outrage that followed her posting a picture on Instagram of her in a bathing suit while on vacation. There were comments that said, “I don’t like her anymore because as soon as she turns 18 she’s a wh*re.”
Another example of public outcry over a female celebrity’s body occurred in early May when Adele (15 time Grammy winner singer/songwriter) posted a picture of herself on Instagram for her birthday. The picture was followed along by a beautiful caption that paid tribute to the front-line health care workers that were putting their lives at risk due to COVID-19. However, when you look at the comments, the only thing you’d see were people commenting on her rather dramatic weight loss. While a lot of comments were generally positive some were just profoundly negative saying “I want the old Adele. Chubbier. Prettier.” Some comments went on to say that they no longer want to listen to her music because she’s “fake.”
These are just a few examples of successful women who have been whittled down to what they look like. Let me be clear that it isn’t wrong to compliment someone for being fit or losing weight, but it becomes an issue when that’s the only thing you look at when praising someone. People are complex individuals and far more interesting if you look deeper than just the superficiality of vanity. Instead of only commenting on how weird and intriguing it is that Billie Eilish almost solely wears baggy clothing, talk about how encouraging it is to see how she stays true to her unique style despite the pressures she faces to meet certain beauty standards. Instead of commenting on how much weight Adele lost, let’s talk about how inspiring it is to see how she has always been confident in herself. Let’s stop objectifying women and start looking holistically at who they are not how they look.