Representation matters. It matters way more than I ever realised. Why should you care? Because as a white cisgender, able -bodied female I was born into privilege. This meant I could buy dolls the same colour as my skin as a young girl. It meant that I saw people that looked like me in movies and in magazines. I had friends at school that looked like and even teachers and role models.
I have privilege, privilege that I may not ever truly understand but that I will continue to educate myself on.
I remember watching a video on tik tok of a little girl seeing the ‘new ‘little mermaid for the first time. She literally broke down in joy. The fact that she had a Disney princess that looked like her sparked joy in way that is hard to express. It made me so happy and broke me all at the same time. Happy of course to see her reaction but sad at the same time that this took so long to happen.
Or when I see people in wheelchairs in movies and Tv, I think of my own sister who is in a wheelchair. I think about the fact that every day she ‘fights’ for the right to be able to do things that you and I may take for granted, like going into a shop or attending an event. Although she inspires me every day, it is very clear how many businesses completely dismiss accessibility. In 2022 why are we still not completely accessible to everyone? You see we all have a need to belong. To be part of something bigger than us and to be safe.
In Kristina newton ‘s Ted talk titled ‘I see me: why representation matters
‘She explains that not seeing enough women in tech, brought up feelings of self-doubt and loneliness for her. She says “we need more female role models”and decided to leave tech to start her own organisation hype to make sure the change does happen.
Representation matters in the size of our bodies too. Growing up in a world full of diet culture, it can be a challenge to learn how to separate our bodies from our self-worth. Especially when We see constant messaging that ‘thin ‘is ‘healthy’ and ‘good ‘, and anyone that doesn’t fit in the box automatically is ‘bad’ and ‘unhealthy.’ Dana Sturtevant and Hilary Kinavey started ‘body trust ‘they are a therapy / dietitian team that focus on healing from the effects living in a weight obsessed world. They explain the irrelevance of bmi in their Ted talk. ‘Body trust is a birthright. ‘
We need to get back to basics, tune into our intuition, listen to our bodies, love our bodies and give them what they need.
We need to see adverts, movies, influencers and magazines that include all body shapes, races genders and individuals with all abilities and disabilities. We can take back our power by backing business that supports these values and follow people on social media that share positive inclusive messaging.
Looking to find peace with your body? Book free discovery call here