Why #fatkini and #losehatenotweight are taking over Instagram
THE northern hemisphere is in summer mode, and a new hashtag has taken over social media. It’s all about bringing positive body image back to the beach.
AS EVIDENCED by the countless images of celebrities on yatchs and models by the seaside on your Instagram feeds, the Northern Hemisphere is in #summertime mode.
There’s a new hashtag taking over the social media world, and it’s all about bringing a positive body image message to the beach — #fatkini.
The term, coined by “fashion, health and beauty loving curvy girl blogger” Gabi Fresh back in 2012, has garnered new traction of late, as plus-size swimwear becomes more widely available. Women of every size and shape have been posting pics of themselves in their bikini — often the first time they’ve worn one in public — accompanied by the #fatkini hashtag, and #losehatenotweight.
“As a chubby person who has struggled with body hatred and fat acceptance my whole life, I was really drawn to these (mostly) celebratory and beautiful images of women embracing their bikini bodies,” says Miriam Zoila Perez of the trend.
Naming Ms Fresh as one inspiration, Perez writes that “for years now more and more people have been pushing back against beauty norms regarding weight and pushing for a culture that celebrates and accepts bodies of all sizes. Often known as the fat activist movement, these folks organise to combat size-based discrimination, push back against the correlation between weight and health and more.”
Virgie Tovar, an academic on the issue, told Perez that for her, “there’s not only this sense that I’m transgressing this rule that fat girls don’t wear bikinis, there’s also this corporeal experience of the wind and sun on my stomach. That feeling is not only novel and exhilarating, but also political.”
Check out some of the #fatkini movement here: