This is a pretty typical American Apparel ad. They're heavy on the sex appeal and minimalism. It's a hipster store, pretty much. Everything is expensive, but it's also made in the U.S. of A. No overseas sweatshops to keep the prices low. I LOVE their men's t-shirts. Super comfy and they keep well. I still have an American Apparel tee that I bought in '06 with no holes or wear. Anyway, since I'm plus-size I can only wear the men's clothing for the most part and some accesories. Recently American Apparel announced a plus-sized model search and the introduction of a size XL for women, which is about a 12/14, still too small for me, womp womp. Despite not being big enough for chunky me I was excited and continued to read the announcement and noticed some odd... language. For one thing the contest was looking for "The Next Big Thing". The description of the contest went on and on with euphemistic fattie jargon. I thought it was kind of weird and for a moment thought to comment on the story which popped up in my Facebook feed but I'd once pointed out anti-fat promos on Forever 21's page before and it was a headache. I bit my digital tongue... but I wasn't the only one who noticed, and not everyone was so quiet about the sourness this contest left.
This awesome gal named Nancy Upton decided to enter the contest as a joke and as a big fuck you to American Apparel for being pretty insensitive. Her pictures mocked the idea that some people have of fat girls; that they only eat and lounge around. She ended up winning the popular vote. I'm only now blogging about this since she was interviewed on the Today Show this morning and revealed that American Apparel has invited her to see their warehouse in L.A. but only after writing her a smug, arrogant open letter.
This isn't the first time American Apparel has had it's run-in with strong-minded plus-sized girls. A few years back, model (mostly of the erotic kind) April Flores, was told by American Apparel that 12+ sized women were "not in their demographic". It really upsets me when stuff like this comes up. It's kind of a back-and-forth thing with me since I want to lose weight for several reasons, one being to fit into cute clothes, and the other side that just wishes that retailers would offer more stylish/affordable clothing in my size! I've also been paying more attention to advertising lately and so much of it that's geared to women also comes along with the idea that you should be thin. It's a struggle, but when I feel unsexy and meh I can now look up to chicks like Nancy Upton who don't take shit from NOBODY, not even BIG retailer giants.
-C.M. xx
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