Lady Gaga Launches Body Revolution, But Her Young Fans Deserve The Applause

Lady GagaLady Gaga wins the internet today. If you need a chance to get emotional and inspired, you should probably head over Little Monsters and check out the amazing “Body Revolution” started when Gaga shared some personal photos and talked about an even more private struggle. After weeks of critics and media commenting that the superstar had packed on some pounds recently, Lady Gaga decided to take a stand to the type of body snarking and fat-shaming we see regularly in our culture. She posted pictures in her underwear and captioned the first one, “Bulimia and anorexia since I was 15.”

It’s a true show of bravery to talk about such difficult and often misunderstood disorders in the public. It’s not the first time that Gaga has opened up about the issue, but she furthers the discussion on body acceptance by launching an entire “Body Revolution” campaign to help young people with the difficult topic. I think it shows that Gaga is genuinely concerned with raising awareness about body image and the damage we can do to young people without even considering it. My hat goes off to Lady Gaga for opening up.

But I don’t think that applauding Gaga should be the end of the story. I don’t think we should just cheer for the pop star, who we have to admit has a pretty stellar body, because she dared to show us unretouched pictures in her underwear. I think the real ovation needs to be for the hundreds of “Little Monsters” who were inspired by their idol and who took their own stand.

It was brave to stand up as a pop star who has to know that they’ll find some cultural and media support behind a body acceptance initiative. It is even more courageous to stand up as an individual and post about your struggles with anorexia. It is fearless to post a pictures of your breasts post-mastectomy. It is beyond strong to post pictures of the scars from multiple surgeries that you’ve been hiding since you were a kid.

These are just a few of things that fans of Gaga’s have shared. They’ve posted pictures for the world to see, a world which is not always kind and is much less likely to support people who haven’t sold millions of records. Lady Gaga did a great thing, and she deserves some praise for it. But the reason it matters isn’t because we’ve learned something new about a recording artist. It’s because she’s managed to inspire others to be happier about their bodies, more proud and accepting of themselves.

As parents, we want to help our kids learn to love themselves. We want them to be healthy, inside and out. And we want them to realize that healthy doesn’t come in a certain size or shape. Unfortunately, parents can’t do it all alone. They’re fighting against a culture that routinely tells girls they are valued by how tiny their waist is or how perfect their proportions align. I think every parent is thankful to have an influence like Lady Gaga on their side. But seeing other teens open up and expose their battle wounds might be the most powerful message of all.

(Photo: WENN)

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