Lane Bryant’s ‘This Body’ Campaign
Lane Bryant has been a voice for plus-size women advocating for diversity, inclusion and the recognition that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. It has been an uphill battle because there is a generally accepted standard of beauty that looks more like Victoria’s Secret’s models than Lane Bryant’s, the retailer that markets to women size 14 and above. While such “standards” are changing slowly (Last month Sports Illustrated featured size 16 model Ashley Graham on one of its 3 covers), perceptions about body size are slow to change.
In another attempt to demonstrate that “curvy” can be just as sexy as size 0, Lane Bryant issued a 30 second television ad featuring plus-size models Ashley Graham, Precious Lee, and Tara Lynn. NBC and ABC refused to air the ads. I could not find out the reason for ABC’s refusal, however, NBC issued a statement saying that the ad would require some minor modifications to “comply with broadcast indecency guidelines.” The ad was developed to advocate for body-positivity and plus-sized pride and has a brief scene where model Tara Lynn is breastfeeding (another controversial subject here in the United States). However, NBC did not specify that this was the issue with the ad.
If the ads were banned for showing too much skin, critics are quick to point out that no more skin was revealed than in Victoria’s Secret’s ads. The question is was it “nudity”, breastfeeding or the size of the models that caused the network’s rejection? Linda Heasley, CEO of Lane Bryant, said their This Body campaign is to show that “the conversation is overdue, unavoidable, and a rapidly progressing cultural (r)evolution, and allows Lane Bryant to continue to be [a] platform for shifting perception.”
Studies show that women who are perceived to be overweight are discriminated against in employment. Scientists at The University of Manchester in England and Monash University, Melbourne, Australia found that overweight women are more likely to experience discrimination when trying to get a job and to be paid less for comparable work than women who are considered to be the “right size.”
Kudos to Lane Bryant and Sports Illustrated for their efforts to change our image of beauty. Big and beautiful are not mutually exclusive!
