"Real women have _______" - skinny is the new "i think you've got to lose some weight".

I hate Dove's "Real Women Have Curves" slogan with a passion. 

I stuffed my bra in seventh grade because of ideas like that, because of society's undying belief that Breasts = Woman.

A few days ago I walked into a store and a fellow shopper didn't hesitate to tell her partner that my body was "gross." 

She said this while three or four feet away from me. I assume she wanted me to hear her and feel bad about my alleged eating disorder/unhealthiness/low self esteem, so that I'd go home and cry over some bonbons about my wasted life and listen to Christina Aguilera and discover my inner beauty and suddenly gain thirty pounds so I could be normal like her.

Real women have hearts and blood and bones. They have skin that breaks and nerves that feel the cold. They are made up of carbon and water and constantly renewing cells. They know who they are.

Real women may not have breasts. They may not even have vaginas. They might like girls or boys or a bit of both or neither at all. They may not always consider themselves to be women, or they might have to fight to be called such since no one else believes them.

Find a new slogan, Dove. Thousands of the people you've unwittingly condemned as Not Real Women are waiting.

Enjoy your profits. 

-reblogged from gmhennessey